Arena of Judgement
by Darien Fawkes
Summary: After her long quest, Dayu gets her answer at last, the man she loves is still alive!  The question is, now she's foud him, how does she get him out of the hellish Arena?
1. Chapter 1

**Legal:** I do not own Power Rangers or the associated characters, names or events. Anything not covered by these rights should be considered purely the creation of the author.

**Rating: **T – may be some mild adult themes.

Dayu's journey had been long, even with her ability to travel through the gaps, but she was willing to go to any lengths on her quest.

Since she had reforged Urumasa, and it now had its full power, it called for its master. Its voice whispered to her constantly, urging her onwards. For the first time it allowed someone other than its recognised master to wield it since their purposes were aligned. Dayu knew what the blade had taken from her before, but for now, it was the only chance she had of finding him.

She arrived in a strange place, far beyond the furthest reaches of her previous travels. She found herself standing at the foot of a huge mountain, overlooking a desert which stretched as far as the eye could see. The only thing that broke the scene was a gigantic, black stone building, which stood almost as tall as the mountain.

It was a forbidding structure, topped with spiked towers, standing over her like a hellish crown. Inside, she could hear the roars of voices, chanting as she approached.

He made her way to the gate, finding guards wearing golden armour standing there. She tried to think of a way in, but as she got loser, they simply stood aside, allowing her to enter. Deciding not to press her luck, she went inside.

She ascended a stairway, finding herself on a stepped, stone arena, looking down into a central ring, almost a hundred feet in every direction. She was surrounded by creatures, some she recognised, but others she could not even guess their origin. However, she had seen enough combat in her time to know that they were here to see some form of battle. They were all jeering, and as she looked around, she could hear that for some reason, they seemed far from happy.

She made her way as close to the outer wall as possible, looking out into the arena. She found herself breathless, and Urumasa called out to her as she saw that one of the two figures in the arena was the very man she was looking for. She had never stopped believing, but now she could see with her own two eyes that Dekker was alive.

In the arena, Dekker hit the wall hard after a strong kick from his opponent. The gold-armoured woman, introduced to him as Scorpina was pacing intently as the crowd continued to boo and hiss. He had no desire for battle. He had hoped that when the Red Ranger had bested him, that his curse was at an end, and he would at last receive the peace of oblivion.

"Fight back you coward!" Scorpina screamed at him.

"For what purpose?" Dekker asked her, simply throwing down his sword. "I have no desire for this battle, do what you will."

"I said fight BACK!" She screamed at him, launching a power blast into him. He struck the wall hard, and landed on the ground, but did not attempt to defend himself. Scorpina looked around the arena, with a look of panic on her face as she heard the disapproval of the crowds. She knew their purpose here. "Can you not hear the crowd?"

"I do not care for the crowd." He told her.

She ran for him, kicking him hard across the face, hoping that she could spur him into action. The crowd were becoming increasingly vocal in their dissatisfaction with Dekker's refusal to provide them with a competitive bout. Dekker though just lay on the ground, face up, looking at her defiantly through his bloodied face.

"Stop dancing and finish him already!" One of the creatures next to Dayu screamed at her. "If the useless bastard won't fight, just kill him and give us a real fight!"

Scorpina approached Dekker, standing on his crotch, but even grunting through his pain, he still refused to fight. Dayu called out to him, trying to reach him, to will him to fight back, but he couldn't hear her over the crowd. Realising that the cause was lost, Scorpina looked forlornly, almost apologetically to a box. Dayu followed her gaze to it.

Inside was a creature, swathed in huge, purple robes, covering the entirety of its body. The hood shielded his face. The only thing that could be seen were huge, armoured gauntlets. Dayu started to run towards the box, hoping to reach the creature.

It stood up and headed for the edge of the arena, looking over the battle site. Its eyes flared red beneath its cloak.

Dekker knew what was coming. The creature was to make the decision, and he was sure that his refusal to fight had secured his fate. Scorpina raised her sword, preparing to strike as the creature raised a hand.

"NO!" Dayu screamed as she got to the box, being caught by the creature's guards. It looked to him, and the crowd fell silent. No one ever dared to approach The Judge. "Spare him please!"

The Judge looked to her, and she could feel its gaze burning through her. Its eyes grew wider as it saw Urumasa strapped to her back.

"You and I have much to discuss." The Judge said in a rasping voice. It turned back out to the arena, holding out a hand.

"No!" Dayu screamed as she struggled against the guards. The Judge held up a thumb, before turning it downwards.

Scorpina saw the signal, just as the crowd had. There was silence in the arena, before a ripple of disapproving jeering started up. Scorpina threw down her sword and stepped away from Dekker.

The Judge waved a hand, at which Dekker found himself once more in the dungeons. The creature in the cell next to him just snorted in disgust.

"You're back?" It asked. Scorpina appeared in a cell a little way off, without so much as a mark on her. "So, The Judge rewards cowardice now?"

"I do not know why I yet live." Dekker assured him. "However, I can assure you, it was not my intention."

"Well, if you ever face me, then trust I will grant you the end you seek." The creature assured him.

Back in the mortal realm, Spike arrived at the hospital after seeing his mom off at the airport. He got to a room, finding her on the bed waiting for him. Sitting up, Melanie smiled.

"You came!" She called out. Spike just nodded.

"I heard you wanted to see me." He told her. "How are you?"

"I'm feeling pretty sore." She told him. "The guys threw me about 20 feet, but when those things arrived, there was no one to catch me."

She was wearing a support collar to protect her neck, and he could see some bruising on the side of her face where she had hit the ground. Spike approached the side of the bed and sat down.

"That doesn't sound like fun." He commented.

"Well, I heard you took a pretty big hit too." She replied, holding up her iPhone. She showed him a video of him being slammed through the bleachers. "Why aren't you...?"

"I was more worried about my mom." Spike told her honestly. "The Rangers got her back, but when I heard she was taken..."

"God, you must have been going out of your mind!" She replied, pulling herself up on the bed. She took her hand softly in his.

"It was really scary." He admitted. Melanie pulled into him and softly kissed his cheek, causing Spike to look at her, a little stunned. Just then, Spike heard a little cough and saw Vicky standing in the doorway.

"Um...Vicky hi!" Spike stammered. "Um...what are...?"

"I'm here to pick up Jimmy." She told him. "He broke his arm."

"Sorry, I didn't...um..." Spike stammered. "Is he alright?"

"You can check on him yourself if you like." She said a little coldly. "Mom and dad are just signing his paperwork. He's just down the hall."

"Yeah, I should..."

"It's alright." Melanie told him. "I'll call you later once I get out alright?"

"Sure." Spike answered as he got up and left the room. Melanie watched him go with a little smile, before seeing that Vicky was still giving her a little glare. Vicky just turned on the spot and stormed out, taking Spike from the arm. Melanie just sniggered as she saw this, before picking up the remote and turning on her television.

Mike and Emily were in the park, taking some time to enjoy the improving weather with some skating. Mike had offered to teach Emily to shred a couple of times, and she had finally relented. He couldn't get her to agree to learn on a skateboard, she had insisted on rollerblades instead, but he was just happy to have something else they could share.

They followed the cycle path through the park, weaving in and out of the other people enjoying the day at the park. It was then that something caught Mike's attention.

He was so caught up in what he saw, that he wasn't paying attention to where he was going. Before he knew what was happening, he had taken a headfirst tumble down a small flight of stairs.

"Mike!" Emily screamed as she glided over to him, rattling down the stairs to kneel by his side. She pulled off her helmet, looking over him with concern. "Are you alright?"

He just sat up, and pointed across the park. Emily followed his arm, seeing Mentor Ji and Brenda standing by a food cart, chatting in a care-free manner. Emily just smiled.

"Aw!" She cooed, seeing the way they stood with each other, completely at ease. She had an arm around him, and a huge smile on her face. Ji seemed delighted to be with her also, and they were talking like they didn't have a care in the world. "They worked things out!"

"Yeah...it looks that way." Mike answered.

"He was really sad when they broke up." She commented. "I'm really happy to see them back together."

"Yeah, that's great." Mike told her. She just furrowed her brows.

"Mike, why did that bother you so much?"

"Think about it Emily, they're here all lovey dovey right?" He asked her.

"Yeah, it's really sweet." Emily responded.

"Um...did you see him at training this morning?" He asked her. "Or at breakfast?"

"No, I..." She stopped as she saw where Mike's thoughts were going. "You think...?"

"I don't think he came home last night." Mike told her. Emily just closed her eyes tightly and shook her head.

"Ew!" She responded as the mental image came to her. Mike just nodded.

"Maybe we should just get out of here." He suggested.

"I think so too." She agreed, strapping on her helmet as the two of them scrambled away as quickly as dignity would allow.

Back at the Shiba House, Serena was wandering around the Shiba House, clearing up. Spike and Bulk weren't training with her today, and everyone else was out of the house. Kevin and Mia had gone off somewhere to train, Mike and Emily had gone somewhere to...well, she really didn't want to give too much thought to what they were doing. Jayden and Antonio had gone fishing, and where the hell Ji was, she hadn't the slightest idea. Basically, the house was empty, leaving her with the clearing up to do. Since she and Ji were the only ones in the house without any real employment, it seemed only fair they were responsible for the upkeep of the house.

She got to Emily and Mike's room, and groaned. Mike was not the most organised of creatures, but she sometimes thought he occasionally made a mess deliberately just to make her job harder.

"You're still manhandling my baby sister." She sighed as she started to pick things up, throwing them onto the bed so she could sort through them. She got so far through, before she saw something that made her smile. It was Emily's diary.

Emily had been given a diary by their grandmother when she had learned to write, and ever since then, she had made a habit of writing everything of importance in it. Although she had a laptop, she still always wrote her diary in a book.

She was about to move it to Emily's dresser, when she was overcome with curiosity. Although she knew it was wrong, that it was a gross invasion of privacy, she couldn't help herself. Looking around to make sure she really was alone, she opened it, flicking through.

Most of the recent pages were very sparse in their detail, some of them only a few lines long. It had been quite a busy few days, so she really couldn't blame Emily really. It was then that she saw a page with a fair bit of writing on it, and it caught her attention. She started to read.

"_Mike and I are getting really close lately. Since we got back from Corinth, since we saw what could have been our lives, I really feel like everything's right for us_." Serena read. She mimed being sick as she read it. "_I really think he's the one._"

"Yeah, we all think that." Serena commented. She continued to read.

"_I know everyone says they respect me, but sometimes I still feel like they still see me as a kid. I really wish I could talk to Serena or Mia about this, but I don't think they'd take me seriously._" Emily continued to write. "_I finally got the courage to go and get it. It took me ages to be able to go into the store, but I finally got it._"

Serena was really baffled by what that meant. What was so big that Emily couldn't think she was able to talk to her or Mia about it? She had been trying really hard to see Emily as a grown woman and give her space. It hurt a little to know that Emily would keep something from her, especially if she thought it was so important.

"_Four days to go until the big night._" Emily continued to write. "_I'm nervous, hell, I'll admit, I'm terrified. I don't know how Mike's going to react, but I really feel like the time is right for us. I've never been more scared, but so excited at the same time. Four days!_"

Serena snapped the diary shut and put it down, her mouth hanging open in horror. She knew that it was wrong to read Emily's diary, she obviously had never intended those thoughts to reach anyone else, but reading it...

She needed to sit down. Her heart froze solid in her chest, and she struggled to breathe. She had bought something, something she was obviously nervous to buy, and she referred to a "big night" in four days.

"Emily?" She gasped, leaning forward to aid her breathing as she tried to comprehend it. Her little sister was growing up, but this was something she wasn't sure she was ready to handle.


	2. The Lost Phone

Dayu was sitting in a large banqueting hall, waiting for her host to arrive. After the battle, she had been brought to this place. More accurately, The Judge had waved his hand, and she had appeared here. She didn't know how long she had been here, but it seemed he was in no hurry to entertain her.

The hall was grossly grandiose, hung with huge tapestries depicting arena battles long since past. A long table ran the entire length of the room, and was set with cutlery made of precious metals and ornate crockery and goblets. Large chairs were lined up on either side of the table, and a massive throne was situated at the head of the table.

Creatures came and went, placing food on the table. One of them was a species she couldn't recognise, but as she got close, the creature looked away from her to avoid meeting her gaze. She recognised immediately the sign of an enslaved creature, one used to harsh punishments for not recognising its place among higher creatures. She managed to get a closer look at the creature, recognising the black bracelet around the creature's right wrist. She had seen Dekker wearing one, and presumed that it was some form of restraint The Judge used to keep control of his slaves.

"You are a curious one." She heard a voice saying, and she turned around to see that The Judge had appeared in the room. "Please, help yourself to refreshments."

"I am not hungry." Dayu told him. "I just came to get someone. If you allow me to take him, I will leave and never return."

"Ah...the half Nighlock." He mused. "And tell me, what would you be willing to trade for his freedom?"

"Trade?" She asked in response.

"He is my slave. If I simply handed over every slave whose loved ones wished it, then I would have none." He replied. "I do not see it as unreasonable to expect some form of compensation for my loss."

"Dekker is of no value to you." Dayu responded. "I saw what happened, he is refusing to fight. What use is a gladiator who will not fight?"

"You seem to overestimate the good will of my subjects." The Judge responded. "I will admit that his refusal to fight is inconvenient. I have seen his battles, and promised my people an entertaining battle. Still, they are happy with bloodshed. It is not my first wish, but an execution will serve..."

"What do you want?" Dayu asked, realising that the creature was serious. The Judge took a seat on the throne.

"I have seen that blade of yours in action." He told her, pointing to Urumasa. She just shook her head.

"It is useless to anyone but Dekker." She replied. The Judge just started to laugh.

"I value trophies, not weapons." He responded. "Give me the sword, and I will ignore your trespass and allow you to leave with your life."

Dayu took Urumasa from her back, looking to it. She thought for a moment about the creature before her. It valued trophies, and the only value it had for slaves was clearly the satisfaction it derived from their plight. She didn't want to leave without Dekker, and she considered using Urumasa, but another thought came to her.

"I have something else to offer you." Dayu told him.

"Please, what could you possibly...?"

"Your subjects, they are displeased with your last games." She reminded him. "Something tells me you value their approval."

"What of it?" The Judge asked.

"I can give you the games you desire." She told him. "I know how to get Dekker to fight."

"Speak quickly." The Judge beckoned her. She laid Urumasa on the table and took a seat.

Back on Earth, Serena was in the yard, watching the Rangers training, keeping her eyes on Emily. She wasn't joining the others in their sword training, right now; she was busy with an easel, working on her symbol power.

Serena couldn't help going over and over in her mind what she had read in her diary. Emily, her Emily, was about to take one of the biggest steps of her life. She knew that it was bound to happen one day, but she was hoping it would be years from now, not when she was still just a kid. She liked Mike, but looking to him, seeing him using his Spin Sword to slice a watermelon in half, she couldn't help feeling angry. So angry, she was tempted to take that Spin Sword and doing to him what he had done to the watermelon.

Although she knew that Emily was the one that wanted this, she was sure that Mike likely wanted it too. He had to have somehow persuaded her to go through with this. She'd never seen or heard anything to suggest that he was pressuring her, or even that he had brought up the issue, but she couldn't bring herself to imagine that this was Emily's idea.

"Look out!" Emily screeched as she dove aside. She had cast a symbol for Rock; unfortunately she had put a little too much power into it. The rock was rolling through the yard towards Mike and Kevin. They tried, but failed to smash it with their Spin Swords, and instead just jumped out of the way as it rolled through, crashing through one of the stone benches. Emily ran over, looking sheepish.

"I'm sorry." She called out as she helped Mike up. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, don't sweat it Em." Mike told her, hugging her tightly. Serena made her way over pulling the two of them apart. Emily didn't look happy, but she just smiled at her to try and defuse the situation.

"You gave it a little too much pep there short stuff." Serena teased her.

"I'll say." Mia agreed. "You almost squashed half the team!"

"The swords, they wouldn't cut it." Kevin commented, looking to the rock.

"Yeah, good thing none of the Nighlock are that tough." Mike replied, looking to Emily. "Are you sure you're alright? You do take these things to heart."

"She's fine." Serena interjected quickly. "Come on Emily. I'll help you clean this up."

"Am I missing something?" Mike asked as Serena pulled Emily away. "Is it just me or does Serena seem really pissed at me for something?"

"I'm sure she's just upset that Emily's upset." Mia surmised, taking them with her towards the dojo. "Come on guys, we'll practice over this way."

In another area of town, Antonio was making his way to the pier, listening to his favourite selection on his iPod. After all the work he'd put in programming the Black Box, Mentor Ji and Jayden had insist that he take a day off to relax and recharge. It had taken a tremendous amount of symbol power to programme, so he was only too grateful for the opportunity.

As he walked along, he didn't notice his morpher falling out of his pocket. He just set up a seat at the edge of the pier and cast in his line.

Spike, Vicky, Jimmy and Mal were walking along the pier. Jimmy had his arm in a sling as a result of the attack at the school, but he was in good spirits none the less. He bounded along behind them, pulling on Spike's jacket.

"Are you serious dude?" He asked. "I mean, Melanie just came straight out and asked you out?"

"Yeah, it's not a big deal." Spike said with a smile that fooled nobody. He wasn't used to getting attention from girls, and Melanie was considered to be the hottest girl in his year.

"Yeah, the girl who accomplishes something as complicated as spelling the name of the school with her arms asked him out." Vicky said sarcastically as she twirled a finger in the air. "You do know she's only giving you the time of day because of your fight with Justin right?"

Spike knew that probably did have a lot to do with it. After taking on and defeating the biggest bully in the whole school, everyone was talking about him. Thanks to YouTube, he had become the school celebrity. Kids who'd never given him the time of day now went out of their way to talk to him. He was sure Melanie probably fell into the category of not knowing who he was before all of this.

"You don't know that." Spike protested. "She said she thought I was cute..."

"Hey, check it out." Mal stated, bending down and picking something up. "Cool cell phone."

"Hey, that is cool." Jimmy agreed. "I haven't seen one like it."

"It probably belongs to someone here." Vicky suggested. "Maybe we should ask around."

"We don't know how long ago it was dropped." Spike told her, taking the phone from Mal and checking it. "There's no way we can be sure that it belongs to anyone here."

"Yeah, and if some guy walks up to you with a cool phone and says 'hey is this yours', would you turn him away?" Mal asked. "This thing looks expensive. We could give it to completely the wrong person."

"So what do you suggest?" Vicky asked him.

"Hand it into the cops?" Spike asked with a shrug. "I can't unlock it or I'd call 'home', but that's the next best thing right."

"The police station's this way." Vicky told him, pointing down the street. "Maybe on the way you can talk about something other than Melanie."

With that, they walked away, leaving Antonio blissfully unaware that a bunch of kids had just walked away with his morpher as he sat, swaying to the music on his iPod.

Back in the Arena of Judgement, Dekker was sitting in his cell as slaves came to hand out bowls of food. One of them put a bowl through the bars, which he ignored.

"You should eat up human." The creature in the cell next to him stated. "You should keep up your strength for the arena."

"You have it if you want." Dekker told it. "I have no desire to play these games."

"Suit yourself." The creature replied, reaching through a gold-armoured arm and taking the bowl. Dekker looked up as something approached. He furrowed his brows as he recognised her.

"Dayu?" He asked, seeing her. She was wearing one of the restraining bracelets on her wrist. "What are you doing here?"

"I had to find you." She told him. "I've never gave up hope of seeing you again."

"But...how did you...?"

"I reforged Urumasa." She told him. "It brought me here to you."

"You did...why would you do something like that?" He asked her. "The curse was finally over!"

"I know, but when I thought there was a chance of seeing you again, I had to take it." She told him, reaching through the bars, taking his hand. "I had to do anything I could to find you."

Without the influence of Urumasa, he was beginning to have his memories return to him. He felt his love for Dayu returning.

"What have you done?" He asked her, touching the bracelet.

"It was the only way I could get in to see you." She told him. "I gave myself to The Judge."

"Dayu..."

"I would do anything to be with you." She told him. "Even if it does mean being a slave."

"I never wanted this." Dekker told her. "You should not have come."

"There is a way for us to get out." Dayu told him. "I made a bargain with The Judge."

"What kind of bargain?" He asked.

"He said he will grant us both our freedom." Dayu told him. "If you take part in his next games and win."

Dekker looked to her, his anger obvious. He had no desire to continue. He had been only too happy to see it all end with his destruction, but now that Dayu's existence was in jeopardy, he had no choice. His heart would not allow him to see her suffer at the hands of another. If he was destroyed, then he would leave her to face The Judge's cruelty for eternity.

"I will take part in his games." He told her. "We will leave this place together."

Back in the Shiba House, Serena was sitting in the kitchen, looking through a newspaper when Mia came in. She raised her attention with a little cough.

"So, is something bothering you?" Mia asked her. Serena just shrugged.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Serena replied.

"Well, you have spent the better part of the morning keeping Mike and Emily as far apart as you can." Mia told her. "Also, that newspaper you're holding? It's at least a week old."

Serena checked the date, and confirmed that Mia was right, before folding it up and putting it down.

"I just...I don't like the way he's looking at her recently." Serena told her. Mia just looked at her a little confused.

"Uh...alright." Mia commented. "So, what's brought this on? You've never had a problem before."

"It's just...I think he's...um..." Serena looked around, making sure that no one was listening. "You know what you told me about you and Kevin? That night in Corinth?"

"Alright, well um..." Mia started. "Wait, you don't think...?"

"I think that maybe they're thinking that way." Serena told her. "I'm just not sure about it."

"Well, I guess I'm not crazy about the idea." Mia told her. "They've been together about a year I suppose."

"About a year?" Serena asked. "Well, that's a hell of a way to celebrate an anniversary. I guess three days..."

"Wait, what about three days?" Mia asked. "Serena, how do you know when they're planning to...you know...?"

Serena realised she couldn't keep it from Mia. She had shown that she knew a lot more than she had any right to know.

"Look, I'm really not proud of this." Serena told her. "I read her diary."

"Serena!" She screeched. "That's so not cool!"

"Yeah, because that's totally the point right now!" Serena told her. "Emily wrote about a 'big day' in three days!"

"And you immediately think of that?" She asked Serena.

"She said she was nervous, that she was wondering how Mike would take it." Serena told her. "She also mentioned buying something she was embarrassed about getting."

"Wow, um...so you think?" Serena just nodded. "Well, I guess it's best they're being safe about it."

"Mia!"

"Well, it is their lives." Mia interrupted her. "If that's what they want, then there really isn't a whole lot we can do about it."

"Castration?" Serena suggested. Mia just gave her a judgemental look. "Alright, bad joke. Well, maybe we can talk to her or something. Try to convince her..."

"Whoa, pump the brakes there." Mia told her. "How exactly do you expect that conversation to go?"

"Maybe if we suggest to her that she wait..."

"And in doing so have to explain how you just magically know what she's up to?" Serena asked her. Serena paused as she realised that Mia was right. It hadn't taken her long to get Serena to cough up the fact she had been reading Emily's diary. It would take Emily even less time. "How do you think Emily's going to feel about that?"

"Mia, we need..."

"Serena, you had no right to look in her diary!" Mia interrupted her. "If you tell her you did, then she'll be embarrassed, but most of all, she'll be angry!"

"Mia..."

"How likely do you think it is she'll trust anything you say after she learns that?" Mia asked her.

"So instead we just sit back and do nothing?" Serena asked her.

"Look, if we can figure out a way to bring up the subject without completely destroying her trust in us, then maybe we can try to steer her the right way." Mia replied. "If not, then she may well rush into it just to spite you!"

Just then, Mia's morpher bleeped. She looked to it and realised that it was a Nighlock attack. She rolled her eyes.

"Right, I need to go." Mia told her. "In the meantime, you can think about how you plan on talking to Emily."

In another part of town, Spike and his friends were almost at the police station when Antonio's morpher started to ring. Spike pulled it out and looked at it.

"Spike, we're here." Vicky told him.

"The phone's ringing." Spike replied. "It's probably the owner. He probably just realised he lost it."

He pressed the call button and held the phone to his ear.

"Meet us by the stadium!" Ji said to him. "Come quickly, it's important!"

Spike flipped the phone away. He couldn't quite place his finger on it, but the voice did sound vaguely familiar.

"Well?" Vicky asked. "Who was it?"

"I think it was the phone's owner." Spike told them. "He said to meet him by the stadium."

"Hey, maybe there's a reward!" Mal suggested. "It is a pretty nice phone. He'll be glad to get it back!"

"Is that all you think about?" Vicky asked him. "We have no idea who this guy is. It could be anyone! We should just hand it in!"

"He thinks someone's going to meet him." Spike replied. "We should meet him."

"Yeah, it's broad daylight, and it's a public place." Jimmy reminded her. "What trouble could it be?"

With that, they all turned and made their way down the street, heading for the stadium.


	3. Cell Phone Trouble

Spike and his friends were making their way towards the arena with the mysterious phone, still trying to fathom who could have lost it. Whoever had called them hadn't used a name, or introduced himself in any way. Vicky still looked a little uncertain.

"Look, we should just hand it in." She told them. "We have no idea who this guy is."

"Vicky, don't be such a spoil sport." Mal teased her. "Remember, nice, flashy cell phone! The guy obviously has money! Maybe he'll..."

"Yeah, he possibly has money." Vicky interrupted him. "Think about it. Nice, flashy cell phone, the owner obviously has money...and he gets mysterious anonymous phone calls to public places?"

They all stopped in their tracks as she said that, looking around at her. She just held up her hands.

"Don't you guys watch TV?" She asked them. "Maybe there's a reason he has money and gets anonymous phone calls to private meetings?"

They all stared at her blankly.

"Drugs?" She asked them. Spike suddenly looked to the phone in his hands a little differently. He had to admit the phone call was odd. It had never occurred to him that the person they were on their way to meet might be dangerous. Just then, Mal tapped him on the shoulder.

"Uh...guys? Does everyone notice something?" He asked. Just then, the kids dove into cover as a bunch of screaming civilians ran for their lives. Jimmy held onto his sister, trying to protect his arm from being bumped by one of the panicked citizens.

"What the hell man?" Jimmy screamed as they all cowered in cover. It wasn't long before they saw the Green Ranger landing in a heap a little way from them, his forest spear in his hand.

"Hydro Bow!" They heard another voice calling out, before energy arrows started to fly in all directions, hitting concrete all around. Shortly afterwards, he also flew into view, landing by the Green Ranger, before a giant, silver ball rolled into view, before turning into a Nighlock.

"Don't you get it? I'm invincible!" The Nighlock told them. "Nothing can penetrate my armour!"

"Let's see about that!" Emily called out as she came into view. "Earth Slicer!"

She launched her weapon the creature's way, at which it turned back into a ball. The Earth Slicer rebounded off its shell, flying straight for them. It lodged itself in the wall they were hiding behind, the blade coming through just between Spike and Vicky, narrowly missing both of them.

They stayed in cover, watching the remainder of the battle, seeing the Rangers continue to get pounded all over the street by the creature, unable to do anything to him in return. Suddenly, the creature stopped.

"Well, this has been fun, but I'm drying out." It told them as it disappeared into a Gap. "So long Rangers!"

Spike and his friends didn't wait around for a written invitation, taking the opportunity to run as fast as they could.

"Man that guy was tough." Kevin commented. "Nothing we did even dented him."

"His armour is organic." Ji replied, gathering up his naginata. "My symbol power did not have any effect on it."

"How are we meant to beat that guy?" Mike asked. "We can't even damage him!"

"What I want to know is, where's Antonio?" Jayden answered. "You called him right?"

"I did." Ji assured him. "I'll keep trying to get hold of him. In the meantime, we need to figure out what to do about that Nighlock."

A couple of streets across, Spike and his friends stopped and pulled into a corner to catch their breath. Mal just looked to Spike.

"Dude, are you like a Nighlock magnet or something?" Mal asked him.

"It's not my fault that thing showed up!" Spike protested. Vicky just took out an asthma inhaler and took a puff as she tried to gather her breath.

"Alright, can we please just get that phone to the cops now?" She asked them.

Just then it bleeped, this time a text message, but not knowing the code, Spike couldn't read it. He could tell that clearly someone wanted this phone back desperately, but he was starting to think that after this, his friends could do with not running around town all day. He just nodded his head.

"Alright, the police it is." He told them. "Come on."

Over at the Arena of Judgement, Dayu was brought to the Box, where The Judge was waiting. He was sitting in a throne, overlooking the central arena. She had been summoned, and was not keen to find out what would happen if she tried to defy him. She had managed to manoeuvre him into a deal that she hoped would see them both freed. She could already hear the clash of swords in the arena, and knew that the first round of the tournament had started.

She came to his side, and took a seat with The Judge, breathing a sigh of relief as she realised that Dekker was not yet in the arena. She looked down, seeing a creature that looked like it was made of red stone, doing battle with what could only be described as a gold-armoured winged ape.

"Moltor and Goldar," he introduced the creatures in the arena, "two exceptional warriors that fell in battle far before they showed their best."

"I have heard the names." Dayu told him, watching the action. Moltor was on the offensive, swinging his two blades in a demonstration of skill as Goldar fended him off with his broadsword. Both of them were carrying a few superficial injuries, but it was clear the battle had only just started. She watched intently, knowing full well that one of these creatures would advance, and potentially be an opponent for Dekker. She watched on in interest.

"I have expended much power assembling the finest stable of gladiators I can." He assured her. "Goldar here has been in my stable for many years. It will be a great shame if he wins."

"How so?" Dayu asked him. The creature kept his eyes on the battle.

"I have dangled a carrot so to speak. I wanted all the gladiators to be motivated to provide the greatest show possible. I thought it a little unfair that only Dekker has a great prize to look forward to." He informed her. "All the gladiators have been promised freedom if they win."

Moltor launched a power beam at Goldar, which tore through one of his wings, but Goldar managed to fight through it, launching one in return that caught him full in the face, forcing him to a knee. Goldar smashed one of his swords from his hand, before hooking his other arm in a hold, forcing him to release the other. Goldar turned the point of his sword down to the neck of his opponent, before looking to The Judge as the crowd roared their approval for the bout.

"A masterful display!" The Judge complimented Goldar as he stood up, looking out to the crowd. "Goldar, the warlord of Titan! Now, how do we feel about his opponent?"

He had his thumb held down, and the crowd started to jeer. He held for a second, before turning his hand, holding the thumb to his throat. The crowd started to cheer enthusiastically.

"Finish him!" The Judge called out. Goldar drove the sword downwards, causing Moltor to scream in agony, before disappearing in a flash of light. Goldar held up his sword, accepting his cheers as he also disappeared, leaving the arena clear. "Goldar advances to the next round! Now, for the next bout, please put your hands together for a warrior with 187 career wins."

With a flash of light, another gladiator appeared. It had a white head, which had a single horn coming from the brow, and a brightly coloured body, giving it the appearance of something of a harlequin. It was carrying a pair of sharp daggers.

"The Master of Blades, Jindrax!" The Judge declared. Jindrax twirled his blades in a skilful display for the crowd, before performing a backward somersault, landing in a guard. "And now, your newcomer. The Cursed Warrior, Dekker!"

Dekker appeared in the arena, a katana in his hand. Dayu leaned forward, seeing the sword. She turned to The Judge, looking to him in horror.

"That isn't Urumasa!" She screamed.

"You noticed that did you?" He taunted her, producing the Cursed Blade from beneath his robes, before looking to her. "You want the freedom of two slaves. You didn't think I would make it too easy did you?"

Dayu just looked back to the arena, her heart frozen as she watched Dekker and Jindrax circling each other, preparing to begin.

Back at the Shiba House, the Rangers, with the notable absence of Antonio, were sitting around, trying to figure out what to do about the new Nighlock. So far, nothing they had tried had any real effect.

"Well, at least we still have the Black Box." Mike commented. "Maybe a little extra power is what we need."

"Power alone doesn't penetrate armour." Jayden reminded him. "Our blades are just glancing off it. If we don't figure out a way through the armour, then increasing the power is just going to send our attacks flying even further off course."

"We'd be more of a danger to ourselves than to him." Mia replied. She looked to Serena, who was just keeping her eyes on Mike and Emily, who were sitting in each other's arms. She kicked Serena under the table and gave her a little glance that reminded her that they should be keeping their minds on the task at hand.

"Well, I for one just want to know one attack that'll do the job." Emily muttered. "I mean, even one attack..."

"Wait, not one attack, but the right combination of attacks!" Kevin replied. "In the right order!"

"Huh?" Mike asked him. "Care to run that by me again?"

"Physics." Kevin replied with a little smile. They all still just looked confused. He took a cup from the sideboard and placed it in front of himself. "Jayden, use your symbol power to heat that up."

Jayden did as he was told, as Kevin explained the plan.

"When any substance is heated, it expands. Right now, that cup is expanding." He told them. "When it cools again, it'll contract and return to its original size."

He then pulled out his Samuraizer, and cast a symbol for water. As the jet hit the cup, it shattered violently. They all looked to him.

"However, if you cool it too fast, the outside contracts more quickly than the inside." Kevin told them. "And that happens."

"We use its armour against it!" Mia responded. "Do you think it's possible?"

"In the absence of a better plan, I think that's our best bet." Jayden replied. "But it'll take all of us, and we might only have one shot at it. So we should practice."

"Alright, let's go." Kevin replied, gesturing outside. As they went, Emily grabbed Mia's arm and held her back for a second.

"Mia, can I talk to you about something?" She asked. Mia looked to Serena, almost wordlessly communicating to her to leave the room. As much as she had no desire to be involved in this, it was clear that Emily wanted to talk to her about something. She just sat Emily down.

"We'll catch up." Mia told the others. "What is it Emily?"

"I was wondering if you could help me with something." Emily told her. "I'm wanting to have a date night with Mike in a couple of days."

"You've dated him before." Mia told her. "What do you need me for?"

"It's just...I really want this to be something really special." She started, beginning to fidget nervously. "It's kind of a big night, so I wanted to really pull out all the stops. You know, a nice meal, music, privacy..."

Mia just held up a hand. She was starting to get a seriously bad feeling now, wondering if perhaps Serena was onto something after all. She looked to Emily.

"You and Mike, you've been together for a while now." She replied. "It's about a year isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's been great." Emily said with a smile. "So, can you help me set up something here."

"Wait, time out." Mia told her. "If this night is so special, are you really sure you want to do it...um...I mean...um...are you sure you wouldn't prefer to go to a nice restaurant or something?"

"I don't have all that much money." Emily admitted. "I've kind of...um...I don't have enough to take us to a restaurant."

Mia was really starting to worry now. Emily wasn't really the kind of girl that went shopping often, and she couldn't remember her making any major purchases. Certainly nothing that would make a major impact on her savings. Like all the other Samurai, her room and board was handled by the Shiba House, but they were sent a regular allowance by their parents, since they were not expecting Jayden to keep them completely. It wasn't often that Emily spent much. Was she lying to her to cover for her real intentions? After all, if she was planning the 'big night', that Serena thought she was, a public restaurant wasn't really the best place.

"Mia, I was hoping you could help me prepare a special meal." Emily continued to plead with her. "Then maybe you and the guys could go to a movie or something and give us some privacy."

Mia was breathless, and couldn't think of anything to say. So far, everything Emily had said seemed to indicate that Serena's suspicions were correct. She couldn't say anything though; there was no way she could think of to address the thought without letting Emily know about the diary. She just nodded, finally being able to say something.

"I'll help you make something." Mia told her, almost regretting it. Not only was she unable to address her fears for Emily, she was in the situation of feeling like she was being pressurised into actually helping her to take that step! Emily just threw herself into an enthusiastic hug, squeezing Mia tightly.

"Thanks Mia, thank you so much! You don't know what it means to me!" Emily shrieked.

"Uh, I think I do." She replied. "You do kind of wear your heart on your sleeve."

"Well, I guess we should get outside and practice with the others." Emily giggled. Just then, their morphers bleeped. Jayden ran in.

"The time for practice is over." Jayden told them. "That Nighlock's back."

"Let's just hope Antonio answers this time." Ji called out as they ran from the Shiba House, morphing as they went.

In another area of town, Spike and his friends were almost at the police station, when the phone started ringing again. Vicky just looked to Spike as he looked at it.

"Oh no, not again!" She called out. "The police station is just..."

"We may as well see if the guy will give us a name." Spike said with a shrug as he answered. "Hello, who...?"

"Where the hell were you?" Ji's voice demanded angrily.

"Um..."

"We're going to be at the Chinese Theatre!" He snapped before Spike could ask for a name. "Try showing up this time!"

"Wait, who is this!" Spike told him. "Wait! He hung up!"

"Spike, the police station is just two blocks away." Vicky told him.

"He said they're coming to the Chinese Theatre." Spike told them. He pointed to it, only a little way up the street. "It's closer!"

"Last time we answered that phone, I almost ended up with a permanent centre parting!" She reminded him. Just then, Mal pointed down the street.

"Guys, that thing's back!" He screamed. With that, Spike and his friends ran for cover, huddled in a nearby diner. The Rangers appeared a little while later to do battle.

"You Rangers still haven't learned have you?" The Nighlock cackled. "I guess this time I need to squash you completely!"

"Right guys, time to try out Kevin's idea." Jayden stated. "Mia, are you ready to help?"

Jayden used his symbol power to create a jet of flame, which Mia intensified and directed right around the Nighlock with her wind power. Jayden gave it all he had, and Mia did likewise, driving the temperature up as high as they could.

"Alright guys, it's your turn!" Jayden called out. "Kevin, Emily go!"

Kevin and Emily blasted it with their symbol power, cooling the creature rapidly. Far too rapidly. Jayden smiled as he saw the shell starting to crack up.

"It's working!" Jayden told them. "Alright Kevin, it was your plan, you finish him off!"

"My armour!" The Nighlock screamed. "What have you done?"

Kevin activated the power of the Black Box, powering up his Spin Sword as he rushed the creature.

"Spin Sword, Dragon Strike!" He called out. The creature tried to block, but its armour was no longer able to withstand the blow, and it just fell to his strike. He placed his sword back in the scabbard as he turned to the others.

"Wow, that was awesome!" Kevin told them. "You guys so have to try that!"

"I am sure you will all get your chance." Mentor Ji told them. "In the meantime, we have bigger problems."

As the monster grew into mega mode, Spike and his friends ran out the back entrance of the restaurant, fleeing the battle site. They very quickly found themselves back on the pier, fighting for breath.

"Alright, that's twice now that thing's led us to a bloody Monster attack!" Vicky complained.

"It was cool seeing the Rangers, but seriously, that thing's a menace!" Jimmy agreed.

"Alright, we'll just get it to the cops..."

"Oh no, this thing's caused enough trouble!" Mal replied, snatching it from Spike and throwing it away. Spike just looked to him.

"Dude!" Spike protested.

"Seriously Spike, that's enough excitement for one day!" Mal told him, walking away. "I'm outta here."

"Me too." Jimmy agreed, following him. Vicky came to his side, smiling at him.

"I know you want to do the right thing, but seriously, I'd like to make it through today in one piece." She told him. "Come on, let's get some ice cream or something and pretend this never happened."


	4. A Punishing Day

In the arena, Jindrax was staggered by the ferocity of Dekker's attack. He had faced many powerful opponents in his time. Back in the day, he had fought the Yellow Wild Force Ranger to a standstill a few times, but this human, this Dekker, had astounded him with his skill.

He clutched a deep wound in his chest, looking up to the Cursed Warrior. Dekker laid his blade across his shoulders.

"You...you are no mere human are you?" Jindrax asked him. Dekker shook his head.

"No, I am something much worse." Dekker told him. Jindrax placed one of his daggers away and called forth a sword.

"The Cursed Warrior. It isn't just a title is it?" Jindrax asked him. He rushed back to the attack, spinning through the air, swinging his sword and dagger in precision blows, each of which Dekker parried, with the exception of one, which dragged across his side, drawing blood. Dekker just glanced at the wound, seeing his blood flowing as the crowd cheered him.

"Your form is good." Dekker complimented him. "However, you stand between me and my..."

"And you stand between me and my freedom!" Jindrax called out as he attacked again. This time, Dekker managed to slice open one of his arms, sending his dagger aside, before pressing the advantage, hammering into Jindrax's guard. The Nighlock fell to a knee, blocking all of Dekker's blows, until he managed to catch a telling one, taking his horn from his head.

Jindrax finally slumped to both knees, his sword falling to his side as his strength started to leave him. He looked to his restraining bracelet, his vision blurred by the strength flowing from him as Dekker kicked his sword aside. He just sighed and looked up.

"Go ahead Cursed Warrior." Jindrax beckoned him. "Do what you must."

Dekker drew back his katana, before looking to The Judge. He waited for word from the crowd before making his decision. The thumb to the throat, and the roar of the crowd told him that the judgement had been made. He swung his blade, which struck Jindrax's head from his shoulders, at which he vanished in a flash of light.

Dekker turned to The Judge, glaring at him as he saw Dayu at his side. He felt no satisfaction in his victory. He could tell that Jindrax was not an evil soul, his end brought him no joy, but it was necessary to bring him one step closer to freeing himself and Dayu.

He disappeared from the arena, and arrived back in his cell. He saw Goldar in the cell next to him, grinning in appreciation.

"A fine victory Cursed Warrior." He complimented him. "Perhaps I have found some worthy competition."

"Do not wish for what would see your end." Dekker told him.

"My end?" Goldar replied, laughing loudly. Dekker just sat in the corner of his cell, awaiting the call to his next battle.

"He will see no end." He heard a familiar voice say from the cell next to him. He turned and squinted, unable to believe what he saw.

"Jindrax?" He whispered.

The Rangers were searching the city after their battle with the Nighlock. They had required the power of the new artillery mode, but fortunately Jayden had a disk that allowed him to take control of the Claw Zord and the Octo Zord for the combination. There was still no sign of Antonio, and he still wasn't answering his calls. By now, they were starting to worry.

They had split up, and gone throughout the city, beginning with all of Antonio's favourite haunts, and circulating outwards. If he was in trouble, they would have to find him.

Mike and Emily were heading towards the harbour. They had traced the signal from his Samuraizer there, but the others had all gone out to look for him anyway, fearing he had somehow been separated from his morpher. After all, Ji had now tried to call him 34 times without success.

Emily was walking with her arm around Mike. Although she was worried about Antonio, she loved being close to him. It was not long now until the big night, just two more days. Mia had already agreed to spend the following day helping her set up for the special day.

Mike stopped as he saw something on the ground. He bent down, picking it up, and showed it to her.

"This is..."

"Yeah, it is." She confirmed. "It's Antonio's."

"Well, we should contact the others." Mike told her. "He could be in trouble..."

"I'll say he is." Emily sniggered, pointing to the end of the pier. Mike looked along, seeing him sitting on a deck chair, with his headphones on. He was kind of dancing to the tunes, his line in the water as he continued to fish. Mike just looked to her.

"We've been trying to get him all this time...and he's been fishing?" He asked.

"He probably doesn't even know it's gone." Emily told him. She approached Antonio, tapping him on the shoulder, at which he turned around, pulling off his headphones.

"Hey guys, what's up?" He asked.

"Um...are you missing something?" Mike asked, tossing him his morpher. Antonio just looked to it, and then to them. "I'd suggest you check your messages."

"Whoa, 34 missed messages?" He gasped, looking to them. "What happened?"

"Oh, nothing much, a Nighlock just attacked the city that's all." Emily told him. "We won by the way."

"Oh shit!" Antonio exclaimed in panic.

"I'd suggest you call the others. They're looking for you." Mike told him, giving Emily that little smile that the others had grown to love and hate. By now, they had kind of a way of communicating without speaking, especially when they were up to mischief. Antonio knew he was in trouble, and obviously they were enjoying watching him squirm.

"How much trouble am I in?" Antonio asked.

"Let's put it this way, I wouldn't count on having much free time tomorrow." Mike replied as he and Emily walked away arm in arm. Antonio just gulped as he dialled Ji's morpher.

"Um...Ji?" He asked. "Yeah, it's me. I just got my messages..."

Antonio had to pull the phone away from his ear as Ji started to dress him down. He was sure that Mike was right about his future punishment.

Back in the Arena dungeons, Dekker watched as the next two gladiators appeared back in their cells. He looked to Jindrax and shook his head.

"I do not understand." He told him. "I thought these bouts were to the death."

"That would end their amusement too quickly." Jindrax replied. He showed Dekker his restraining bracelet. "These restraints are placed on us when we come here. Some of us are spirited here after our deaths. Others, like me, were kidnapped, but either way, we wear these."

"I have noticed them." Dekker replied, showing him his own. It was only then that he noticed the markings on it were different than those on Jindrax's.

"Their numerals." Jindrax told him. "When we come here, we start a countdown from 100. Every victory brings us one closer to freedom."

"But they bring you back to life if you lose." Dekker surmised.

"Not without cost." Jindrax told him. "If we lose and are 'spared', the count goes up by two. If we're 'finished', it goes up by ten."

"So when you lose..."

"That's how he keeps his games running." Jindrax informed him. "Some of us will never leave this place."

Jindrax turned to him.

"I saw the way you looked to that woman in the stands. She's why you're doing this isn't she?" Jindrax beseeched him. "I had someone I looked at that way. This tournament promised freedom regardless of record. I have over a hundred and seventy victories I need to attain. I had no choice..."

"I understand." Dekker replied. "I wish it did not have to be so."

"So do I." Jindrax replied sadly.

The following day, back at the Shiba House, the Rangers had just finished with morning training, and were being allowed to do their own thing. All with the exception of one.

Mike, Jayden and Kevin were all spending their free time in the training yard, taking great amusement in Ji's merciless punishment drills. Antonio knew how serious it was that he had not answered the call on his morpher. Although he was not meant to be, the fact was that he was now part of the team, and as such, like the others, he was expected to take the same responsibility for ensuring he was always ready for action. In addition to making him exercise constantly, Ji would occasionally call up one or more of the others to spar with him in the hopes that he would learn what it meant when the team were not present to back each other up.

Emily though was inside with Serena and Mia. They had been out shopping for ingredients for the special meal Emily had asked Mia to help her make. Serena was there as well, hoping that somewhere along the process, they would be able to bring about the subject of exactly how special she wanted her 'big night' to be. She was well warned by Mia though to be careful what she said, lest they reveal her snooping.

"Alright, the turkey is in the sink defrosting." Mia told her. "It needs to defrost for a whole day to make sure it's completely done unless you want to poison yourselves."

"I'd really rather not do that." Emily replied as she stood, mixing the stuffing mixture. "Thanks for doing this. I really appreciate it."

"Well, the more preparation you do tonight, the more time you have to yourselves tomorrow." Mia reminded her. Serena gave her a little glance, with a slightly sour expression. She really didn't like the thought of this at all, but now they were actually helping her? Mia was even giving her tips on how to spend less time in the kitchen so she could spend more time with Mike? None of it sounded good to her.

"So, tomorrow's a special night?" Mia asked her.

"Yeah, I really hope so." Emily told her. "I've been looking forward to this for ages."

Serena dropped the knife she was using to cut vegetables, causing them both to look around. Mia gave her another warning glare out of sight of Emily.

"Butterfingers." Emily teased her. "I thought I was the clumsy one."

"Sorry, it just...slipped." Serena told them, putting it in the sink and retrieving a clean one from the knife block.

"Well, be careful." Mia told her, giving her a look. "You don't want to hurt yourself."

"So, you've been planning this for a while?" Serena asked Emily. Emily just nodded.

"Yeah, Mike's so great. He's been really good to me." Emily told them. "I mean, all the stuff he's done for me. The graduation, the prom...I just wanted to do something really special for him. Something he'll remember forever."

"Yeah, he did have that prom for you." Serena told her. "I didn't have one, but Mia did. Say Mia, do you remember your p..."

Mia picked up a strawberry and shoved it in Serena's mouth, causing Emily to look between them curiously. It wasn't subtle, but Mia wanted to stop Serena saying too much. She could see where that line was going; it was at Mia's prom that she'd spent the night with Aaron.

"The strawberries are really good don't you think?" Mia asked, handing one to Emily. "These'll make an amazing cheesecake."

"Mike loves cheesecake." Emily agreed. "I had thought about soufflé, but Mia suggested that it takes a little time to make. A cheesecake we can make tonight and keep in the fridge."

Serena swallowed the force-fed strawberry, and flicked a thumb in the direction of the door.

"I'm going to...um...check on the others." Serena replied. She made her way outside to the training yard, finding the others chuckling to themselves as Antonio hung from a beam, with Mentor Ji watching intently. Serena approached them as she saw them talking.

"So...what's this punishment?" She asked him.

"He has to hang from that beam for ten minutes." Jayden told him. "If he falls, he has to do two hundred sit-ups."

"We're all betting on how long it'll take him to drop." Kevin told her. "I'm up for eight minutes."

"I'm giving him the full time." Jayden told them. "What? I'm the boyfriend, I have to be supportive."

"The way his arms are shaking, he'll be lucky if he makes it another..." Mike was interrupted as Antonio collapsed on a heap on the ground. He just started laughing.

"Antonio, you know what this means!" Ji told the exhausted Gold Ranger.

"Um...if I may." Serena chipped in, picking up a shinai. "I kind of want to try a few things before I go to Bulk and Spike's place tonight. Maybe...?"

"Ah, perhaps that would be a better punishment after all." Ji replied. Antonio just looked to her pleadingly. "Go ahead Antonio, begin."

Later that night, Emily was putting the last of her prepared dishes into the fridge as the others all started to slowly made their way off to bed. Jayden helped a bruised and exhausted Antonio to their room, as the Gold Ranger kept muttering something about Serena being a sadist. Mike just came to her, crunching an apple.

"Are you ready for bed?" He asked her. Emily just closed over the fridge door to make sure Mike couldn't see anything inside, and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm done here." She told him. She came over to him, putting her arms around her. "So, how's Antonio?"

"I think it'll be a long time before he risks losing his morpher again." Mike chuckled. "I doubt he'll be able to stand up straight for a week."

She took him through to the bedroom, where he started to get changed for bed. She looked over to him and smiled as he got ready for bed. He was the most amazing person she'd ever met, and every day he made her believe that she had made the right choice.

As she got changed herself, and lay down to sleep, pulling the blankets around herself, she just smiled. Tomorrow was going to be her big night, a night she would remember forever, and she had worked hard to make sure everything would be perfect. She couldn't wait.


	5. Emily's Big Night

After morning training, the residents of the Shiba House were all sitting around the counter in the kitchen having breakfast.

Serena was sitting, playing with her breakfast with her fork as she kept her eyes on Emily and Mike. Tonight was it, the "big night" she had read about in Emily's diary. She knew she had no right to read her sister's diary, and that revealing that she had done so would likely lead to a serious shift in their relationship, but she couldn't help feeling the way she did. A part of her really wanted to just grab Emily and scream at her that she was making a mistake. Another wanted to grab Mike and beat him so badly he wouldn't be capable of doing anything to her.

Then...there was a part of her that was just really hurt. She had to admit that one of the things that really upset her about Emily's decision was that she obviously felt like she couldn't talk to her about it. They had shared everything...well...almost everything, pretty much since Emily had been born. That she was going to take one of the biggest steps she ever would, and wouldn't even mention it to her, it felt like she was losing her little sister. It hadn't been easy to accept Mike was part of Emily's life, but she had come to terms with the fact that Emily had enough love in her heart for Mike without losing any of the love she had for her.

"Well Rangers, I have news." Ji told them as he came into the room, wearing suit pants and a black silk shirt. "Today, I'd like to treat you to a special day out."

"A special day out?" Jayden asked him. "Where are we going?"

"I was thinking of taking us all out to the theatre in town." He informed them. "There's a Japanese theatre group in town. They're going to put on a traditional Kabuki production."

"Wow, that sounds amazing! I always loved Kabuki!" Kevin stated. "I always said if I wasn't going to be a swimmer, I'd like to be an actor!"

"You wanted to be a Kabuki actor?" Mike teased him, shoving his best friend gently. "In what reality would that ever happen?"

"Don't make fun of my fiancé's childhood dreams." Mia reprimanded him. "I think it's sweet."

"Well, I thought we could make a day of it." Ji told them. "We can go to the park, then for some lunch and we can meet up with Brenda..."

"Brenda huh?" Jayden asked, giving Antonio a sly look. The Gold Ranger was still aching after his punishment drills the day before, but he still smiled at the thought of the teasing Jayden was obviously thinking of. "So...this is for us to get to know her?"

"In a way yes." Ji replied. He had indeed thought that it was best to have the others get to know Brenda better. Although he was sure she could be trusted, he knew that they needed to feel the same way now that she knew their secret. He hadn't yet told them that she had seen him morphing, and thought that this would be a good way to soften the blow. "I've also got a private room booked for us at my favourite restaurant for after the performance."

"Wow, you really have got a special day planned." Mia replied. "That all sounds really great...but..."

"It's alright; I know that Emily has other business." Ji replied, looking to Emily. "I already knew she has other plans. I decided that this would give her some privacy."

"Really?" Mike asked. "Em, you didn't say anything."

"Well, I did have something planned for us." Emily told him. "I kind of had our own special day planned."

"So, if the rest of you will all kindly go and get changed, then we'll be on our way." Ji told the others. "Serena, Stephen, you are both welcome to join us."

"Well, it's my day off so...I guess I have nothing better to do." Stephen said with a shrug, putting his arm around Serena. "It sounds like it'll be great."

"Smart-casual dress should suffice." Ji told them. "Well, go!"

As they all filed out, leaving Emily and Mike alone, Serena couldn't help glancing back. Ji's timing couldn't have been worse. He was clearing out the house, and she had no excuse not to go. In the end, she couldn't help feeling like she was being railroaded.

In the Arena of Judgement, Dayu watched yet another bout with The Judge. Although she could see nothing of his face other than his glowing red eyes, she could see that he took some form of delight in her suffering. He held a thumb to his throat, causing the crowd to roar in approval. The warrior finished her opponent, before turning to The Judge and bowing.

"Your winner, Vypra!" He announced. "She progresses to the next round!"

He waved a hand at which she disappeared.

"Now, the tournament will continue through tomorrow, but for today, we will begin with the second round of competition!" He called out. "Firstly, welcome back...Dekker!"

Dekker appeared in the arena, looking around at the crowd of savages there to watch the bloodshed. He could see that Dayu was still sitting with The Judge, watching the bouts, looking on miserably. He gave her a little nod before taking up position.

"Now, the deadliest bounty hunter in the galaxy, please welcome Vexacus!" The Judge announced. Dekker watched as another creature appeared. An armoured alien he couldn't recognise, that looked vaguely like a shark. It produced a sword, and confronted him. Dayu watched in horror as Vexacus started the bout before the announcement with a power blast.

"Well, this one promises to be exciting." She commented.

Later in the evening, in a restaurant in town, Ji arrived at a French restaurant with his party. He had tipped the maitre d well to ensure they had plenty of privacy in their room.

As they made their way through the dinner, Serena couldn't stop fidgeting and checking her watch for the time. After the play, it was now already early evening, and she was sure Emily and Mike would be eating too. Mia had prepared a low-maintenance menu specifically to make things easier for Emily and ensure she had the maximum time alone with Mike.

"Serena, what is up with you?" Stephen asked her as he took another bite of his steak. "You've barely been with us all day."

"It's just..." She jumped as Mia kicked her under the table. She was starting to get sick of that, but she knew Mia was just trying to stop her from doing something that she would regret. She just sighed. "I just didn't sleep too well last night."

"Really?" He asked her. "Well, from your snoring..."

"It just wasn't restful!" Serena told him, cutting him off. Mentor Ji and Brenda were talking with the others. Stephen saw that Ji had his arm around her, and smiled a little, before reaching around Serena. She shrugged his arm off aggressively.

"Serena..."

"Is that all you guys think about?" She grumbled. "I'm trying to eat."

"Sorry." He muttered in reply, before turning back to his meal. Kevin had noticed it, and leaned across.

"What was that about?" Kevin asked him.

"I don't know, she's been acting weird the last couple of days." Stephen whispered. As the waiter came in to clear their main course, Serena checked her watch again.

"Well, I'm feeling kind of full." She announced. "Does anyone else want dessert?"

"I thought you were hungry?" Stephen commented.

"I'm not allowed to change my mind?" Serena asked. Mia knew exactly what this was. She was trying to get them all home to check on Emily and Mike. She just glared at Serena.

"Personally, I'd like a look at the menu." She replied.

"Me too." Brenda said, a little oblivious to the whole thing. "I am such a sicker for rhubarb crumble."

As the waiter finished clearing the plates and got them menus, Serena continued to check her watch. Stephen just leaned over to Kevin.

"Dude, seriously are all women crazy?" He asked.

"I stopped trying to figure them out." Kevin replied with a shrug.

Back at the Shiba House, Mike put down a plate with his slice of cheesecake on it. He cradled his stomach gently and leant back onto the couch.

"Wow, that was just...amazing!" He told her. "Emily, you really outdid yourself."

"I just wanted to make everything perfect." She told him. "I really wanted everything to be special."

"With you, every day is special." Emily told him. "Today especially."

Mike suddenly got a little concerned. She kept saying today was special, but she wasn't being clear exactly why. He just wracked his brains for possible answers.

"Um...happy anniversary?" He asked nervously. She just smiled.

"Well, that's sweet, but it isn't our anniversary yet, that isn't for a couple of weeks." She told him, beginning to brush some hair out of her face. She looked to him. "Think about it Mike. What's today?"

"Uh...Wednesday?" He asked. She just hit him playfully.

"You're hopeless." She told him. "It's February 29th. Leap Year Day!"

"Yeah?" Mike asked.

"Well, there's kind of a special tradition on Leap Year Day." She told him. She slid off the couch and reached under a cushion, she pulled out a box, handing it to Mike. He opened it, finding a gold watch inside.

"Emily, this is...this had to cost a fortune." He gasped, checking the back and finding she had it engraved. "To the love of my life, for the rest of mine."

"Mike, I love you more than anyone else I've ever known." Emily told him. Mike looked back to her, seeing her on one knee before him. She took his hands in her own. "I can just feel it in my heart. I know I'll love you forever. Mike, will you marry me?"

Mike looked to the watch and realised she wasn't joking. He had always told her he wasn't fond of rings. He looked back to her, seeing her bright eyes wide with anticipation and fear, waiting for his answer. He got off the couch, kneeling on the floor with her and smiled, cradling her face gently. He nodded.

"Yes." He whispered to her. "Yes, of course I'll marry you."

Emily shrieked in excitement as she threw herself into his arms. They kissed passionately, after which Mike pulled her into a tight hug. He had thought about taking that step with their relationship for a while now, even before they had met their other selves in Corinth. He couldn't believe his luck at finding her. As they parted a little way, he handed the watch back to her.

"I guess since we are doing this backwards, you should do this." He told her, holding out his wrist. Emily slid the watch into place, clipping it shut.

Just then, Serena burst in, looking around intently. She had pretty much dragged everyone home to get there in time. The others came in after her.

"Serena!" Emily called out. Serena could see them both kneeling together on the floor, Emily with tears in her eyes. Her little sister then blurted it out. "We're engaged!"

"Wait, say...you say what now?" She asked her, looking around. Mia gave her a look that said 'I told you so'. Serena suddenly thought about it all. Emily's big night...she hadn't even thought about the date. February 29th, the day traditionally a woman could propose to a man. Serena suddenly lit up and helped both Mike and Emily up, hugging them both.

"Oh God, welcome to the family!" Serena announced. "Emily, you kept that one quiet, why didn't you tell me?"

"Don't you think Mike kind of had a right to be the first to know?" Emily giggled. "I've not even told mom and dad yet. I wanted to ask him first."

Serena just felt like a complete idiot as she thought about this. Emily hadn't kept her in the dark because she didn't care; she just wanted to ask Mike first. Emily just looked around at them all. "Um...guys, aren't you forgetting something?"

With that, they all closed in, hugging Mike and Emily tightly, congratulating them on the biggest celebration of their lives.


	6. The Tournament Progresses

Dayu shrieked in horror as Dekker spun across the arena from another harsh blow. Vexacus was a deadly warrior, and entirely pitiless. He seemed to delight in every single injury he could inflict, circling his opponent every time he had a chance, looking for a wound to exploit. Like his form, he sought any weakness like a shark and attacked without mercy.

In the arena, Dekker bled heavily from a few flesh wounds that scored his body. Every time he was hit though, he managed to quickly regain his feet, and face his opponent. His own experience was such that he knew any time taking the luxury to remain down; to succumb to injuries would be an invitation to be taken out. Even in his current state, he was clearly keeping his eyes firmly focussed on his objective. Vexacus stood between him and the games the following day; he was an obstacle to getting them free.

Dayu turned to The Judge, who just seemed to watch on intently. Seeing the hilt of Urumasa near him, she half considered reaching for it. It was only a couple of feet away. One lunge, and she could grab it. She didn't know the full extent of The Judge's power, but she had considered, that if she could just reach it, she might be able to throw it into the arena before he had a chance to destroy her. With Urumasa in his hands, Dekker was all but unstoppable.

"Your man does not fare well." The Judge told her. "He must do better."

"You have not seen the best of him." Dayu responded. The Judge just chuckled in response.

Back down in the arena, Dekker knew that he was in serious trouble. Vexacus was indeed a deadly foe, far faster and stronger than many he had faced. In his human form, he was still one of the greatest swordsmen that had ever lived, but it seemed that Vexacus was still more than enough for him.

The alien bounty hunter paced before him, and Dekker turned this way and that, his instinct calling him to keep him in view at all times. As much as Vexacus had injured him already, he knew he didn't have a chance if he allowed him to attack him unawares.

"Give it up." Vexacus warned him. "I can keep this up all day!"

"The shark takes its opponent a piece at a time." Dekker told him. "All I need is a decisive strike."

"Keep dreaming human." Vexacus laughed. Dekker ran for him, swinging a few times, but the bounty hunter managed to evade him, tying him up in a clinch, before blasting him away with a power blast. Dekker could still smell his burnt flesh, and his breathing was laboured. Vexacus allowed his ego to take the better of him and looked around, seeking approval from the crowds. Eventually, he noticed something. He saw Dekker looking to the box, where Dayu was sitting, looking on apprehensively. He just snorted.

"You humans really are weak aren't you?" He replied. "You can't see what this is can you?"

"Be silent and fight." Dekker told him as he pulled himself up to one knee.

"You fight for what you will never have." Vexacus taunted him. "What do you suppose will happen to her this night?"

"Be silent and fight." Dekker warned him again.

"How do you think she has bargained with...?"

Dekker let out a savage, and hellish yell that seemed to shake the very arena as he rushed forwards. He smashed his sword with Vexacus' guard, staggering the bounty hunter. Refusing to let up, and backed by a rage that was beyond human, he continued to attack, scoring a few hits with his katana, but with the majority being blocked. Vexacus blasted the sand, sending some up into Dekker's eyes to blind him.

"Dekker!" Dayu screamed, seeing him struggling to see. Vexacus also noticed, and powered up his blade, running forward for the death blow, the blade levelled at throat height.

Dekker felt something flaring up in him, and couldn't understand it. All of a sudden, every muscle felt strong and ready. He looked up, and his blurry vision cleared up in time to see Vexacus coming. Instead of a mere parry, he threw his blade up with all his might, at which they rang out in the air, and both swords shattered, raining pieces of metal in all directions.

Dekker was the first to recover, driving the hilt and what was left of his blade into Vexacus' back as he staggered past, sending him to the ground. Rage burned through him like a forest fire. His eyes locked on Vexacus as he turned. The bounty hunter looked up, and recoiled in fear.

Dekker let out a hellish roar as he burst into bright red flame, and found himself once more in his Nighlock form. He looked down at his hands briefly. He didn't understand. He no longer possessed Urumasa. He was no longer under its curse; he shouldn't have a Nighlock form.

Dayu was feeling much the same as she watched from the box. She saw the Nighlock Dekker, and she couldn't believe her eyes. It was the curse of Urumasa that turned him into a Nighlock. Without it, he should not have been able to transform. How was this possible? Although she searched her mind for an answer, for him, it was a mystery for another time though, right now, he knew he had something else to deal with.

He looked to Vexacus, who was just getting to his feet, and beckoned him forwards.

"Let us see what happens on equal footing." Dekker told him. Vexacus threw a few punches his way, which Dekker swatted aside, before catching one, and twisting it sharply.

Launching himself into the air, he twisted around, catching Vexacus' neck with a trailing leg, ending up on the sand in an arm-bar.

Vexacus screamed in agony as Dekker pulled on it. Every muscle burned with supernatural energy, and with a scream that echoed throughout the arena, he pulled with all his might, pulling the whole arm free, leaving Vexacus rolling around as his blood stained the sands.

The crowd screamed in raucous approval as Dekker threw it away, before looking to Vexacus.

"I'll put you down." Dekker told him. "Stay there and only add two to your total."

"Please." Vexacus replied, pulling his remaining hand behind his back, beginning to power up an attack. Dekker ran forward, screaming as he went. Vexacus unleashed the attack point-blank.

Unfortunately, The Cursed Warrior had anticipated this treachery, and smacked the attack aside as he drove both knees into his chin, bearing him to the ground. Dekker then hooked his head, and spun around on the ground with a loud crack, shattering his neck. Vexacus disappeared in a flash of light.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please give it up for the best bout of the day...Dekker!" The Judge announced. Dekker felt no joy in the victory though, and could only stare at his white, armoured hands. He still had no idea how he had a Nighlock form still. As far as he was aware, he only became a Nighlock when he took up Urumasa.

"Hey." Jindrax called to him. "Hey, are you alright?"

"I am not certain." Dekker told him as the runes on his bracelet changed. "I am not certain of many things."

"What happened?" Jindrax asked. "Well, nothing too bad, you won right?"

"Did I?" Dekker asked him.

"Yeah, you're back down to 100." Jindrax told him, pointing to his bracelet. "One loss, two wins, you're back on even. Even if you don't win..."

"I am not sure if I can win." Dekker told him. Jindrax just looked confused.

"Uh...you just beat Vexacus." He told him. "He was down to 36. Now, he's back to 46."

"I accessed powers...ones I believed I no longer had." Dekker told him. "I don't understand."

"What's to understand?" Jindrax asked him. "In the arena, you win or lose. There's no middle ground. Use anything you have."

Dekker just nodded, but as he rested, his mind would not stop. There were many questions, and very few answers.

Back at the Shiba House, Serena came into the kitchen late at night to make herself some cocoa, finding Stephen waiting for her. He had a cup waiting for her, and a little bit of a smug grin. She just rolled her eyes.

"What is it?" She asked him.

"Tonight wasn't what you expected was it?" He asked her. Serena just looked to him.

"You knew...?"

"Serena, you couldn't have made it more obvious you didn't want to leave the house." He told her. "You were practically dragging us back all the way."

"So, what are you saying?" Serena asked him.

"You knew something was happening tonight didn't you?" Stephen asked her with a little grin.

"I don't..."

"But something tells me, you weren't expecting something you'd be happy with." He continued. "Am I right?"

"God I hate it when you do that." She muttered as she sat down, taking her cup in her hand. "Was it that obvious?"

"Uh...just...a lot." He replied with a snigger.

"I'm not proud of this." Serena told him, looking around to make sure they were alone. "I kind of had a peek at her diary."

"Really?" He replied, arching an eyebrow.

"Is it really spying if it's your family?" Serena asked him.

"Would we be having this conversation if you really believed that?" He asked her. She just shook her head.

"I guess not." She told him. "She said she was planning a 'big night' for her and Mike."

"Let me guess. You didn't think about this." Stephen asked.

"Stephen..."

"Serena, it's really sweet, you know I love spending time with your sister." Stephen told her. "But don't you think you need to let her have her own life?"

"She's just..."

"She's an adult." Stephen reminded her. Serena just glared at him.

"You don't have brothers or sisters; you don't know what it's like." Serena told him. "I told Emily everything, right from the moment she was born."

"Isn't that an exaggeration?" He asked her. She shook her head.

"I was a couple of years older. I used to tell her stuff just like she was one of my stuffed toys, because I knew she wouldn't tell." Serena continued. "By the time she could talk, I was so used to it; well...Emily and I know more about each other than our parents ever will."

"So what does that have to do with anything?" He asked her.

"She never told me anything." Serena muttered, taking a slurp of her cocoa. "When I read that, it wasn't so much what I thought...it was the fact that she didn't talk to me that hurt."

"Serena, you kind of went a little psycho." He reminded her. "Can you blame her?"

"I know, I guess it's just that, I felt like I was losing my little sister." She told him honestly. "I couldn't bear that."

"Who was the first person she hugged?" Stephen asked her. Serena just looked to him.

"Me." She answered.

"You have no idea what you mean to her." Stephen assured her. "There are times I'm really jealous of Emily. The attention you give her, the way you can talk without talking...it's something I just don't have."

"Stephen..."

"You'll never lose her." Stephen assured her. "She has a big enough heart to take you, your parents, and Mike."

"God, I hate when you do that." Serena said with a smile, taking another sip. "I think it's easier to hate the brother in law."

"Come on, she's a good looking girl. It would happen sooner or later." Stephen teased her. "Would you prefer she end up with Spike?"

"Ew, that's creepy." Serena told him.

"Maybe Ji?" He asked.

"Alright, that's definitely worse!" Serena told him. "Please stop!"

"Maybe..."

"I said stop!" She giggled, throwing some sugar at him. He just laughed in response. Eventually, once they had stopped laughing, she looked at him and smiled.

"I really do love you." She told him.

With that, they both pulled into a long, soft kiss.

Back at the Arena, the guards came back, heralding a new day of games. The gladiators were all drawn from their slumber by weapons being rattled off the bars and barked orders, but Dekker was already awake. He had been the whole night, his mind turning over many things. He had considered everything he had seen and heard, and was quickly trying to assess his situation. He was interrupted as Jindrax snapped to his feet and ran to the bars.

"Zenaku!" He called out. A creature with a single horn like him, but looking like a black wolf looked his way. "If you get out, find her. Tell her..."

"I'll do what I can." Zenaku told him. With that, he disappeared. Dekker considered this exchange. Most of the slaves here had accepted their position. They knew that the odds were against them, because any odds at all were more than acceptable. As far as he was aware, some of them were already dead, brought back to take on these battles. Others had been taken from their lives to be here. It was then that a thought finally dawned on him.

"We are all damned." He sighed.

"What are you talking about?" Jindrax asked him.

"The Judge." Dekker stated. "He has ultimate power. He can bring the dead here, and he has arranged these contests to penalise those who lose into impossible odds of winning."

"What are you saying?" Jindrax asked him. Just then, Zenaku appeared back in his cell, bloody and battered, clearly defeated. The runes on his bracelet changed to show his new status.

"None of us will ever leave this place." Dekker told him flatly. "Not under his rules."

"Then what do you..."

Jindrax's words were cut off as Dekker disappeared. He found himself back in the arena, facing his new opponent, a skeleton that appeared to be half bleached bone, and half camouflage coloured.

"Rito, versus Dekker!" The Judge announced. "Begin!"

With that, Dekker's thoughts snapped back to the immediate threat of the warrior before him.


	7. Banquet of Champions

Dekker stood, glaring at his new foe. This creature, this Rito, was a strange thing to behold. It had no skin, no muscles, no tendons...many of the things his years of training had taught him to injure and exploit to defeat an opponent.

His weapon was another thing that seemed odd. It was a sword, but it had no noticeable edge or point, and it was made of bones bound together by means he could not see or understand. To describe it as a sword was generous, only its shape made it that way. In truth, it was more of a club.

He had seen and experienced many bizarre things but this creature truly was an enigma. He could not see any means by which its bones were even joined. It was then that it spoke.

"So, we gonna do this or are you gonna stare at me all day?" Rito stated. Dekker just smiled.

"Do what you will." He replied. Rito ran forward, and the crowd came alive, roaring in delight, until Dekker acted.

He was a skeleton. He had no flesh to carve, nor muscles to rend. He had nothing but bone, and to Dekker, that meant one thing. The most basic of attacks, he was looking at him as a structure. A mannequin of bone.

He powered up in a purple flame, turning into his Nighlock form, before kicking out. He smashed both of his legs into tiny splinters with a kick, leaving his body to fall to the ground.

Not waiting for any instruction, and to complete silence, he stepped forward and stomped down as hard as he could, shattering Rito's skull. His body lay still, and the crowd remained silent. He had finished the bout, but had not given them the entertaining battle they had anticipated. He felt no joy in dispatching his foe, he merely wanted to make his way forward.

"Well...let's hear it for your winner." The Judge stated. The crowd applauded slowly and politely as both Dekker and Rito vanished. He looked to Dayu. "Well, that was...less than spectacular."

"Dekker does not fight for entertainment." She told him, feeling herself smiling a little. "He fights to win."

"Then perhaps I need to change the game a little." He replied, snapping his fingers. Dayu found herself forced to her knees by an unseen force as the runes on her restraining bracelet started to glow. She knew that she had sacrificed her freedom to him for the chance she had given Dekker. Although he had never enforced it before, now she knew the full extent of control he had over her. He turned to the audience, who were murmuring among themselves in a dissatisfied manner. "My loyal audience, I promised you the ultimate games, and I will provide them!"

He saw they were not responding well, and his eyes glowed brightly in anger.

"Tonight's bouts will determine eight finalists!" He announced. The crowd still didn't seem convinced, which only angered him further. "They will all compete in the arena at the same time!"

This finally raised a cheer from the crowd. Dayu saw him look to her, and knew he was up to something.

"They will compete for the ultimate prize. Not only will they be free of the arena, I will expend all my power to give them any wish they desire!"

The crowd was now reignited in its faith and bloodlust. They cheered with approval at the mere thought of the spectacle to come. Eight of the finest, all competing, all at once, for anything they desired, it was something they could not imagine in their wildest of fevered dreams. He then looked to Dayu as the next two warriors entered the arena.

"You will see your man tonight." He told her. "Perhaps then you can remind him to make his fights a little more...entertaining. Victory is not everything."

"Tonight?" She asked him. "I can see him tonight?"

"Of course." The Judge replied, waving a hand before her, turning her back to her human form. She stared at her hands in amazement. "The champions will require...entertainment."

Back in the mortal realm, the Rangers had finished morning training, and were free to go about their business. Mike and Emily were in town, wandering through some shops.

Mike loved the feel of the watch around his wrist. He couldn't believe his luck that the most amazing person he'd ever known, the most beautiful, soulful and caring person he ever had the luck to meet had pledged herself to him. He was not a traditional person by any means, and he got a little kick out of the fact she had proposed to him, but there was only so far that he was not traditional. He had insisted that he needed to buy her a token of their engagement as well. Emily was delighted, and being more traditional, she liked the idea of a ring, so he had insisted he was going to get her one.

He was regretting that insistence. After nearly twenty jewellers, he still hadn't found anything. Just when he found something he thought was good enough, the same thing happened.

"How much?" He screamed at the counter assistant. "That could pay for the whole freaking wedding!"

Mike, unlike Emily, hadn't been saving diligently, largely because he hadn't really been planning on this day coming. He was amazed by how much jewellery really cost. It was just metal and stone right? Yet somehow anyone he asked about it seemed to quote him figures he would take months at best to afford.

Emily gripped his arm tightly. She didn't really care about the ring, not really. What she cared about more was how this was making Mike feel. Although he'd never say it, he was a proud man. He had never really worshipped the almighty dollar, and was happy enough just to get by. However, he wanted to get her something special, something that really meant something important, that showed her how much she meant to him, and yet time and time again he was being reminded of the fact that his lack of 'ambition' had led to the fact that he simply could not afford it. Everything he thought was right for her was beyond his reach.

"Mike, it's alright." Emily told him. "Please, just...let's go."

He just sighed and shook his head in defeat. He felt worthless, he felt like a complete failure. The one and only thing he wanted was to give her something that meant as much to her as she did to him, but he just couldn't. It seemed like the world was out to show him how worthless he was, to show that he didn't deserve her. When they got outside, Emily stood before him.

"Mike..."

"Don't say it Em." He told her. "Please, just...don't say it."

"Mike, I don't care about the ring!" She told him despite his protests. "It's you I want, not some piece of metal!"

"Emily, it's about more than that!" He told her. "I just want...I just want you to have what you deserve."

With that, he just shook his head in defeat.

"I'm sorry." He told her.

"Mike, I don't..."

"Just...I'm sorry." He told her, walking away. "Please just...I'm sorry."

"Mike!" She called out again as he walked off. She wanted to follow him, but she knew at such times, that he needed to be by himself. Despite his bluster and protest, Mike was a proud person, and his feelings were easily hurt. Emily just walked away, heading back to the Shiba House alone.

Back in the Arena, Dekker appeared in a place he couldn't fathom, looking around in confusion. He was completely naked, and he had no idea what this was. Before him was an enticing, warm, scented bath. Female slaves wearing white robes stood before him. He looked to them in confusion.

"What is this?" He asked.

"You are to be prepared for the feast." One of them told him. "Please, The Judge insists."

He got into the water slowly, still not sure how to feel. He had to admit that the water felt heavenly. Compared to what he had received up until now, this experience was just luxury beyond measure. He looked to a hand in amazement as a goblet was placed before him.

"Wine?" The slave asked.

"Perhaps later." He told her, waving it off. "I wish to keep my senses sharp."

"You will not grace the arena until tomorrow night." She insisted. "More than enough time..."

"I have more than one arena to face." He told her. She took the wine away.

Later, Dayu was with other slaves, dressing the meeting hall for the banquet for the champions.

As she laid down a flagon of wine, the doors opened. The first of the 'guests' arrived. Goldar looked to the table spread, flanked by a pair of slaves and smiled.

"My final night as a slave shall be a good one." He commented, picking up a leg of lamb, taking a huge bite. "The Judge knows our worth."

Dayu watched as others started to come in, all accompanied by slaves. In total, seven of them arrived and took their places around the table, with one notable absence. Dekker had not yet arrived.

The Judge appeared in a cloud of black smoke, taking his seat at his throne. He looked around and his eyes started to glow.

"Tonight, you feast and prepare for the ultimate prize." He told them. He looked to the woman at his right.

"Vypra, not only will you be free, but I will also grant you life. You will not be sent back to oblivion, you will be free to do as you will."

She smiled and nodded, taking a sip of wine, wordlessly agreeing to the deal.

"Scorpina. You were turned to mere sand by the energy Zordon released upon his passing. Should you win, you will be returned to life to make others quake in fear at your name as you always dreamed."

As she too drank, accepting the terms, he looked to the next champion.

"Goldar, my most exalted champion. I am almost sorry to see you go." The Judge declared. "Should you win, you will receive your life."

"The universe will tremble at my name once more!" He roared, guzzling wine greedily, accepting the terms. The Judge continued.

"Trakeena, Zeltrax, you shall both be free to pursue whatever desires you seek." The Judge told them, turning to a purple armoured warrior.

"Korrag, you will not only be returned to life, but I will give you what you have always lacked. You will have a body of your own." He stated. Korrag couldn't drink, having no mouth, but he lifted his goblet to show he accepted the terms. "Dai Shi, you too shall get a new body, and a life to pursue the victories you..."

Just then the doors were thrown open. Dekker walked in, causing Dayu to marvel at him. He looked just as he did back in the days in his father's house. He was dressed in fine purple robes, embroidered at the edges with golden thread. He was washed, oiled and scented, and looked like a God among men. Unlike the others, he chose to arrive without slaves. He arrived alone. He made his way to the table, taking a seat.

His gaze moved to Dayu, seeing her as the woman he loved once more. His heart was in pieces seeing her in slavery once more, especially slavery she had chosen for his sake. He would have chosen oblivion over subjecting her to this, but she had forced his hand with her foolhardy actions. Now, he could only hope his own foolhardy acts would redress that wrong.

"Apologies for my late arrival." Dekker stated. "I lost track of time."

"Dai Shi, you will receive not only life, but a body of your own." The Judge reiterated as he looked to Dekker. "As for you..."

"I never have believed in foretelling victory." Dekker told him. "I will declare the prize of my choosing upon the sands should I be victorious."

"Well, if you are as slow there as you were to dinner, it will be a moot point." The Judge replied, raising some laughs from the others. Dekker saw Dayu's concerned and confused look. She had already bartered a deal; he was putting it at risk. The Judge just looked to him as he refused to lift his goblet.

"You do not accept..."

"What cause do I have to believe you will honour the terms of our deals?" Dekker asked him. The Judge's eyes just glowed brighter.

"You dare...?"

"I but ask something stronger than word." Dekker told him, picking up a knife. He sliced his own palm, dripping blood into his goblet, before pushing it towards The Judge.

The creature just growled at him, before returning the gesture, slicing its own palm and dripping blood into the goblet, before picking it up.

"I will honour all deals, and swear it to blood." The Judge declared raising the goblet to what everyone presumed were its lips inside the cloak. It held out the goblet, which levitated over to Dekker. He took it out the air, and drank as well.

"Then we have all accepted the terms of our deal." The Judge declared. "I shall retire now, but as champions, feel free to indulge of my hospitality. Food, drink, company...do as you will. The games begin at noon."

As he disappeared, the others started to feast. Dayu just ran to Dekker's side as she saw they were now alone.

"Has this place seized your mind?" She asked him. "You cannot..."

"I cannot win." He told her. She just looked to him stunned.

"But..."

"Nighlock or not, the fact is this is The Judge's game." He reminded her. "Do you really believe anyone can win under his rules?"

"Dekker, it is all we have!" She begged him. "Please!"

He took her by the arm and took her out to the hall. She was overcome with nostalgia. She could remember hundreds of stolen moments within his father's house like this. He ran his fingers through her hair softly, lovingly, giving her hope that he was the man she loved. He kissed her, and closed in, holding her softly.

"This is a game I intend to win. He told her, parting from her. "Believe in me."

"I always have." She replied as he walked away, leaving her alone. She didn't know what Dekker had planned, but if it returned him to her, she didn't care. The following day's bout would decide fate for them both.

Back at the Shiba House, Emily was miserable. She knew Mike was hurting about the fact he couldn't give her a ring. Although she did dream of having such a token, to her it was exactly that, a token. It didn't matter to her he couldn't give her a ring, all she wanted was him.

Mike knocked on the doorframe gently. She turned to see him entering slowly.

"I'm sorry about earlier." He told her. "I just kind of...well...I just...I needed to think."

"Mike, I don't care about the ring." She told him for seemingly the millionth time. Just then, Mike pulled out a little box and handed it to her.

"I know it's against the rules, but I called dad for advice." He informed her. "He arranged this."

Emily opened the box, finding a diamond solitaire ring inside. It was simply the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She looked to him, her eyes already sparkling.

"It was my grandmother's. She left it to me in her will." Mike told her. "I didn't even know about it, but it was in a safe deposit box. Dad called the bank and told them..."

"You...this...this...?"

He got down on a knee before her, taking the ring off her, before presenting it to her.

"You asked me, and I accepted." He reminded her. "My grandmother apparently told me to give this to the one. I know that's you."

He slid it over her finger...but realised it was far too big. Just then, it started to glow, and it shrunk, becoming just a perfect size for Emily's ring finger. They both looked to the door, seeing Ji standing there with his Samuraizer.

"I'm a romantic." He told them. "I was just doing my bit to help."

Emily just looked back to the ring, and found she was happier than she could ever remember. She reached to Mike's face and pulled him into a long, passionate kiss. Ji just turned and left.

"Now I know how real parents feel." He muttered. "Thank God I don't have kids."


	8. Switching Things Up

The day of the Primus, the main event had arrived. Dekker was sitting in his cell, waiting for the call to the arena. Unlike the previous days, he was dressed in his robes, and he was allowed to keep his sword. Clearly The Judge wanted his champions to look the part for their final battle.

The surrounding cells had been cleared out, and reserved for the eight champions, who all stood, ready for the battle. Dekker had tried and failed the previous night at the feast to explain to them all his fears. He knew that The Judge was all powerful in this place, with magic that allowed him to do literally anything he wanted. He knew that meant he was capable of granting the gifts he had promised, but it also meant something else. There was no way he could be MADE to keep his end of the bargains.

He had heard the champions' prizes, and could understand why they wanted to believe in The Judge and fight for his prize. Every one of them was offered the prize they valued most. In the arena, he knew what he had to do, and now he was sure he would be standing alone. It was the way he had been for centuries. Soon, his time would come.

On Master Xandred's Junk, the Furry Worts descended, giggling and singing an annoying little song. Octoroo looked around swatting at a couple of them with his staff.

"Stop that you annoying little things!" Octoroo whined as he found himself distracted from his studies. "Dayu's music could soothe the master, but this..."

"Miss Dayu, Miss Dayu!" They started to chant in their irritating babbling giggle. He suddenly realised his mistake. Master Xandred's rash actions in destroying her Harmonium had led to Dayu leaving, and the end of the music that could help ease his uncontrollable rage. His rampages were now becoming more frequent. Hearing her name would only succeed in taunting him over her absence.

"No, don't say her name!" Octoroo pleaded with them. "You don't want to make the boss..."

Too late, Master Xandred stormed into the room, and bellowed in anger, grabbing one of the creatures and tearing it down from the ceiling.

"Never say her name in my presence!" He called out, crushing the unfortunate creature in his grasp. "Octoroo, maybe you can do something useful for once and actually find a way to destroy those accursed Rangers!"

"I'm trying sire, really I am!" Octoroo protested. "But these distractions..."

"Perhaps I can help with your Ranger problem." A Nighlock stated as he came onto the deck of the Junk. Octoroo and Master Xandred both stared at him in amazement at his audacity. Neither of them could recognise him, he was not one they were familiar with, and yet he dared to step aboard the ship without invitation.

"I haven't seen you before." Xandred responded, gripping his sword tightly.

"That's because I work for a different master." The Nighlock replied. "They call me Switchbeast."

"A different master?" Octoroo asked.

"Perhaps you are unaware, but there is no other master!" Master Xandred told him. "I am the Lord of all Nighlock!"

"Not all. There are some even you do not hold dominion over." Switchbeast told him confidently. "Now, you can posture, pretending you'll destroy me, or you can listen to what I have to say, since our motives are crossed at this moment."

"Speak quickly." He told Switchbeast.

"I can switch the spirits of people into other objects." He told them. Xandred just glared at him.

"That's it?" Xandred asked him, drawing his sword. "That's your plan?"

"Master Xandred, please think about this!" Octoroo told him. "Maybe this isn't such a bad plan. After all, the Rangers are tough. What would be easier to destroy, the Rangers? Or...say, a crystal wine set?"

"So, you like the way I think?" Switchbeast asked.

"We'll see if you manage it." Xandred replied. "Go; show us this power and what it can do."

Over in the Mortal Realm, Mal, Vicky and Jimmy were all sitting around in a tailgate market place as Bulk and Spike set up a stand. Jimmy was sitting, watching an old lava lamp as Mal just leafed through a book, tossing it aside.

"Alright, so...why exactly are we here again?" Mal asked. "We could be doing something...you know...fun!"

"Guys, please, just help me out." Spike begged them, unwrapping a teapot from some newspaper. "You're the ones that keep pushing me to have a date with Melanie. I already agreed to meet her at the movie theatre later."

"Yeah, so...why are you doing this?" Jimmy asked, continuing to watch the lava lamp. "Shouldn't you be...you know...dancing a jig or something?"

"I need to get some money together." Spike explained. Jimmy looked around as he heard this, looking confused.

"You need money?" Jimmy asked. "I thought your folks were loaded!"

"Yeah, but they don't give me a huge allowance. They don't want me to be spoiled." Spike explained. "I get an allowance, but most of the money's tied up in investments for the future. Uncle Bulk offered to give me some money, but I said I'd prefer to earn some of it."

"And you plan to do that with this junk?" Mal asked. "No offence Spike, but most of this stuff is a real pile of crap!"

"Mal!" Vicky reprimanded her friend. "I think it's really admirable that he doesn't want to rely on his family's money."

"But what's the point in having a rich family if you don't get the benefit?" Mal asked her.

"Look, people buy all sorts of junk at these things." Jimmy reminded him. "Look, that guy over there's trying to sell a post box!"

"I just wish that Antonio guy wasn't grilling so close." Mal muttered, looking to where Antonio and Jayden had set up a large picnic set, hoping to take advantage of the market to make some serious money. "It's making me hungry."

Over at the picnic area, Serena, Stephen, Mike and Emily took a seat at one of the tables. They had decided to come and support him in his venture to earn some extra money, but it was also the first time that they all had to get together since the engagement and spend some time together.

"I can't believe you bought that." Serena chuckled, seeing Stephen cradling his purchase.

"Are you kidding? It's a Sega Master System!" Stephen told her. "I haven't seen one of these in working condition since I was a kid!"

"You are such a dork." She giggled. "So, how's business been Antonio?"

"Business has been off the hook!" Antonio told them as Jayden handed him another burger from the grill. Although he was used to specialising in fish, he had expanded his range to include a multitude of barbecue items. Even he appreciated that burgers and sausages were incredibly popular as the weather got warmer. "Seriously, I can't keep this stuff on the grill. Say, how about one of my jalapeno burgers?"

"Sure, I'll try anything once." Mike replied with a smile. Emily just crinkled her nose as she thought about it.

"Sounds a little spicy." She answered. "Maybe I'll just have mine plain."

"Well, I'm in the mood for fish." Stephen added. "What do you have?"

"I have the perfect thing!" Antonio responded, going to his cool box. Just then, Serena noticed something odd.

"Um...what's that guy doing?" She asked, pointing to a guy a few feet down the road as he knelt down on the ground, holding his hands in front of him like a little box. Mike just shrugged.

"Yoga?" He suggested. They then noticed a few more people standing strangely. All of them appeared to be frozen to the spot, standing in odd poses.

"Guys, I'm starting to think something's really wrong here." Emily added. Just then, Antonio turned to them, carrying a fish on a plate.

"Caught fresh this morning!" He told them. Just then, they saw some kind of claw hit him. He suddenly stood, frozen still, as another claw hit the fish. Antonio flopped to the ground, and sucked in his cheeks. They all turned as the claws retracted, following them to see Switchbeast standing before them.

"What did you do to Antonio?" Jayden demanded, confronting the creature.

"You'll all find out soon enough." Switchbeast called out as he started to attack. Mike, Emily and Jayden all morphed, rushing towards him with their Spin Swords at the ready. Switchbeast sent them all flying, before turning his attention to Stephen and Serena.

"So, you like videogames do you?" Switchbeast asked, seeing the Master System. "Well, let's see how much you like them when you're in them!"

He launched a claw into Stephen, and another into the Master System, following which Stephen fell to the ground. Serena rushed to check on him.

"Stephen!" She screamed as she started to check on him. He was completely unresponsive, sitting on the ground, completely still. The others continued with the battle, leaving her to survey the scene.

As Mia and Kevin arrived, they were just in time to see Jayden take a hit. Serena watched as he stood with one arm up in the air and a huge grin on his face. It was as the claws recoiled that she then realised what was happening. On the table the claw had come from was a ceramic gnome, standing exactly the same way as Jayden was.

"Now to destroy the Red Ranger once and for all!" Switchbeast called out. However, rather than heading for Jayden, he seemed to be heading towards the gnome.

"Mike, the gnome!" She called out. "Jayden's in the gnome! Stop him!"

Mike didn't know what she was on about, but he didn't have time to argue, instead he just blocked Switchbeast's strike with his Spin Sword. Serena moved quickly to gather it up in her arms as Mike took care of Switchbeast.

"I'm drying out already?" The Nighlock complained. "I need some Sanzu water to recharge!"

Serena breathed a sigh of relief that he had left before he could take out the rest of the team. She looked around, and was relieved to see Mike and Emily still walking around unaffected. However, she couldn't see Mia or Kevin. Emily and Spike were also searching.

"Alright, what the heck is going on?" Mike asked.

"I figured it out. The Nighlock hit those people with a claw at the same time as he hit another object." She explained. She held up the gnome. "Does this look familiar?"

"That looks like Jayden." Emily commented. "Wait, you think...?"

"It hit Antonio at the same time as that fish, and now look at him." Serena told them. Mike could see that Antonio was lying the same way the fish was on the plate. "I think the Nighlock transfers people's spirit into other objects."

"We didn't see what it turned Mia and Kevin into." Mike responded. "They could be anything!"

"Right, just...start looking." Serena told them. "There's so much crap here, they could be anything. We just need to find something they seem to look like and get them back to the Shiba House."

"Right." Mike agreed. "That thing seemed to think destroying the gnome would destroy Jayden."

"Alright, let's figure out what they are and get them home." Serena told them, picking up a box and some newspaper for stuffing. She placed the gnome inside, before grabbing the Master System and sighing deeply. "God I hate this crap."

Back at the Arena, Dekker appeared in the arena. He drew his katana, and looked around as one by one, the other champions arrived.

Korrag, Dai Shi, Scoprina, Goldar, Vypra, Trakeena and Zeltrax. Each of them turned on the spot, and faced the Judge in his box. Dayu, as always, was by his side. With the exception of Dekker, they all saluted him, at which The Judge stood up, raising his hands to silence the crowd.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, your patience will be rewarded!" The Judge told him. "Before you, we have the finest collection of champions assembled. Only one will walk away with the ultimate prize!" Dekker looked around the champions, and gripped his sword tightly, preparing for the start of the contest. Dayu moved around The Judge, preparing for the moment to move. "Champions...take your...!"

Before anyone knew what was happening, Dekker powered up into his Nighlock form, and threw his katana, catching Zeltrax in the stomach. As he fell forward, Dekker ran, springing from his shield as he launched himself towards the box.

The Judge was about to move, but Dayu grabbed his cloak, pulling it back and putting him off balance. Grabbing Urumasa, she threw it to the edge of the box as Dekker grabbed the side of the parapet, and lunged over, grabbing the hilt of Urumasa, before leaping back down to the arena. The Judge looked to Dayu and his eyes blazed in anger. She felt a burning agony coursing through her entire body as the bracelet started to glow.

"You insolent little wretch!" He screamed. "Do you really think this will matter?"

"At least now the odds are even." She told him. "Destroy me if you must, but rest assured. Dekker is not to be underestimated."

Back in the mortal realm, Vicky woke up after the attack, and started to look around. She had seen attacks before, but this was something else. She felt different, but in a way she couldn't quite put her finger on.

She looked across, seeing Spike lying on the ground and ran to his side, checking over him. He wouldn't respond to anything she did. His uncle was sitting, with his arms in a circle, and she was a little puzzled as to exactly what he was doing, but he too was unresponsive.

"Jimmy!" She called out. She seemed puzzled that her voice seemed to sound a lot deeper than she was used to. "Jimmy!"

"Uh...sis?" She heard a reply. What puzzled her though was that it was in her voice. She looked amazed as she saw herself coming into view. "Whoa!"

It was then that she looked down and saw a cast on her arm. She reached up, feeling her face...but it wasn't. "I'm you?"

"This is so something I'm going to describe to a therapist." Jimmy replied with a shake of the head.

Back at the Shiba House, the remaining Rangers had gathered up the other's bodies, and the items they seemed to be connected to, arranging them in the living room. Emily placed the gnome on a shelf, and started waving her hand in front of its face.

"Do you think they're awake in there?" She asked. "I can't imagine anything so horrible."

"I hope they're not." Mike agreed. "I mean, just look at Kevin."

The Blue Ranger was standing in a ballet pose, which mimicked that of a music box ballerina perfectly.

"I believe Serena is correct." Mentor Ji stated, using his Samuraizer to analyse each of the objects in turn. "I can feel their spirits locked inside these objects. They're trapped, unable to defend themselves."

"At least we have the sealing symbols around the house." Mike commented. "The Nighlock can't just come in and smash this stuff."

"No, but what about everyone else?" Serena asked them. Mike and Emily just looked at each other.

"What do you mean?" Mike asked her.

"The city doesn't like people leaving a bunch of crap lying around in the streets." She reminded them. "When the garbage patrol goes past the market and finds all that stuff unattended..."

"They'll take it to the recycling centre." Emily gasped. "All those people!"

"Serena, you and I will try to find as many of those items and keep them safe as possible." Mentor Ji told her. "Mike, it looks like it's up to you and Emily to stop the Nighlock."

"Then I guess we need to train hard until he shows up again." Emily replied, looking to Mike.

"Come on Emily." Mike replied, taking his fiancée's hand, taking comfort in her grip. While he was worried about all of his friends, he was glad that Emily was not one of the Nighlock's victims. "If it's up to us, let's make sure we're at our best."


	9. Mike's Plan

In the Arena, Dekker was fending off attacks from both Zeltrax and Trakeena as the eight way battle continued. He backed up, swiping aside blow after blow as he gathered his composure.

He both hated and loved having Urumasa back in his hands. The blade had cursed him with his insatiable thirst for battle for centuries, and from the moment he took it in his hands, he could feel its power coursing through his veins. It was like an old friend coming back to him, but at the same time he knew that taking up the curse again would unleash what he once was.

Zeltrax had focussed on him following the initial attack. He was wounded, and was desperate to avenge that. Dekker saw his opening as Zeltrax powered launched a laser beam, which Dekker deflected into Trakeena's face, causing her to shriek in agony.

The distraction was all he needed, allowing him to slice across her chest, causing her to fall to the ground, unmoving before disappearing from the sands in a flash of light. He ran forward, knocking Zeltrax's shield aside, before bringing Urumasa back, exploiting the chink in his armour from the earlier attack, causing Zeltrax to explode, disappearing from the arena as the crowd cheered. In the box, although still being held by The Judge, Dayu felt heartened to see this. Two champions down, only five to go.

Back at the Shiba House, Mike was in the yard, practicing hard. He and Emily had both been working very hard on their swordsmanship since Switchbeast had disappeared, knowing that sooner or later he would be back.

Mike especially was feeling the pressure. Although he had worked hard ever since he came to the Shiba House, one thing he never admitted was that at times he still considered himself the weakest member of the team, and the thought of having to face Switchbeast alone with Emily terrified him. Although he had beaten Nighlock before, he always had one or more of the others to back him up. This time though was completely different. There was no Mia, no Kevin and no Jayden for back-up. Antonio wouldn't arrive at the eleventh hour with a brilliant scheme or flashy Gold Ranger move to save the day. Even Mentor Ji had gone off into the city to search for victims of the Nighlock. This time they were on their own.

It terrified Mike to think that Emily only had him to rely on in this battle. Since they had gotten engaged, it had gotten even more prominent in his mind how important she was to him. They were a team, they were all there to back each other up, and it scared him to think of what could happen now that she only had him. Just the thought of Switchbeast getting to her...it was too much for him.

"It's been a long time since I saw you training by yourself." Emily commented as she arrived. They had trained for much of the day, but when she couldn't find him, she had gone looking for him, only to find him in the yard training even harder. Mike just grabbed a towel.

"I've never taken a Nighlock by myself." He told her. "I need to be at my best."

"I remember when you took on that long-armed Nighlock." Emily replied.

"I didn't take him alone." Mike replied as she put an arm behind his back, leading him into the house. "If it hadn't been for Jayden, he would have clobbered me."

"Well, what about that freak with the depressing rain?" Emily asked him. "You were the one that took him down."

"I still had the others to back me up." Mike told her. He sniffed the air and recoiled. "Do you smell something?"

"Antonio!" She called out, noticing the plate lying out. "Um...we weren't sure we should put him in the fridge, we don't know if he can feel anything, but..."

"I think he needs to be in the fridge." Mike told her as they started to make their way through to the kitchen. "Emily, the thing is...this is really scary for me."

"It's scary for me too." Emily told him, taking his hand in her own.

"Emily, everyone's relying on me." He reiterated. "It's not like before where one of the others could bail me out if I screwed up."

He squeezed her hand gently.

"If anything happened to you, I don't know what I'd do." He told her.

"Mike, nothing's going to happen to me." She assured him, holding up her engagement ring. "I have complete confidence in you. That's what this means to me."

Mike couldn't help smiling as he heard her say that. He pulled in closer to her kissing her softly. He couldn't believe his luck at finding her. As they parted, she just smiled at him.

"You are everything to me." He told her. "You always know what to say."

"Hey, who are you talking to?" She responded with a little laugh. "By the way, I saw what you did to Kevin. When he gets changed back, he's going to be so mad at you."

"Yeah, I know but you've got to admit. It's so worth it." Mike replied with a little snigger, looking over to where Kevin was standing, still in the ballerina pose, wearing a tutu. Just then, the Gap Sensor started to sound. Emily and Mike ran through to the living room, leaving the plate of fish on the counter. Emily called up the city map, checking the energy reading.

"It's him." Emily confirmed. "He's back."

"Wait a minute." Mike said with a little smirk. Emily looked to him happily.

"I love it when you get that look." She told him. "You have an idea don't you?"

"It's a little crazy, and really risky." Mike told her. She just nodded.

"That sounds like one of your plans alright." She agreed as they ran from the house. "Tell me on the way."

Unfortunately, as they left, the door banged so hard, it ended up swinging open again, leaving the house unlocked. By the time they were morphed and out of the yard, neither of them noticed a little kitten hopping off the wall and heading inside, drawn by the smell of an easy meal.

Back at the arena, Goldar and Scorpina double-teamed Vypra, taking her down in a loud explosion as Dekker, Korragg and Dai Shi all traded deadly attacks. Goldar looked to his former partner, and they both nodded. Although they knew that eventually only one of them could claim the prize, they also knew that their best chances lay in using the teamwork that they had back in the day to eliminate the rest of the competition.

They combined their powers, sending forth an energy wave, hoping to thin out their opposition. Dekker sensed the attack coming and threw himself aside, as did Korragg, leaving Dai Shi to take the full fury of the attack. Goldar and Scorpina followed up with a double slash, sending Dai Shi falling to the sands and out of the contest.

Korragg and Dekker turned to face Scorpina and Goldar as the crowd went wild.

Back in the Mortal Realm, Mike and Emily arrived in the middle of the city, a little before sundown as Switchbeast was sending people running in a state of panic. Mike stood a little before Emily, looking to her as the Nighlock became aware of their presence. She didn't look particularly happy with what was to come, worrying about Mike's plan. When he had told her that it was risky, she hadn't realised exactly how risky he was talking about.

"Hey Nighlock! You're going to turn everyone back to normal." Mike warned him.

"Or what?" Switchbeast asked in response. Mike and Emily leapt forward, swinging their swords as they went. The Nighlock was a little too fast, sending them both crashing to the floor. Switchbeast launched a claw, which Mike took to the chest. He screamed out in pain, but looked to Emily. It was now her part of the plan.

"Now, what to make you." Switchbeast murmured. It got a wicked grin on its face as it saw a trash can. "That'll do nicely!"

As it launched the other claw, Emily ran as fast as she could, deflecting it with her Spin Sword, catching the tentacle it was attached to. Switchbeast started to panic as she ran straight for him, ramming it into him.

The Nighlock screamed in agony, falling to its knees. But as it looked down, it was not its hands it saw. It was a pair of white gloves. It looked up, seeing itself a little way off.

"Ew, this is disgusting!" The Nighlock complained. "I'm human!"

"Well, if you don't like that, let's see if there's something else you'd prefer." Mike replied from his new form. He launched the claw into his original body, while Emily found the most harmless thing she could find, a soccer ball, and jammed the other claw into it. Mike's body just curled up into a ball, indicating that it had worked.

"Alright, let's see how you like this! Penalty kick!" Emily called out, kicking the ball as hard as she could into a wall. As it came back, she caught it, and started doing a basketball dribble, before picking it up and starting to squeeze it hard. Mike chuckled.

"Wow, who knew you had a sadistic side?" He asked her. "Alright Em, that's enough. Let's put him back."

Mike transferred the Nighlock back into his body, at which the Nighlock/Mike fell on its ass, clutching its head.

"My head!" Switchbeast screamed. "That was awful!"

"You turned my best friend into a fan!" Emily replied. "It serves you right!"

"Alright, we can keep this up as long as you like." Mike told him. "Or, you can tell us how to turn everyone back."

"Or I could always destroy your body, leaving all of you trapped!" Switchbeast replied, placing Mike's Spin Sword to his throat. "Say goodbye!"

"Go ahead." Mike told him. "You destroy yourself and you're gone. I'm willing to sacrifice myself for the planet. But are you?"

Switchbeast held off for a moment, before deciding that Mike was serious. He was willing to condemn himself to remaining trapped in Switchbeast's body if that was what it took. He just sighed.

"Alright, hold perfectly still." Switchbeast told him. Mike did as he was told, following which Switchbeast swung the Spin Sword, destroying some crystals on its chest. In a flash of light, Mike found himself back in his own body. It had worked. Mike and Emily both wordlessly continued the attack, not allowing Switchbeast the chance to regain composure back in his own body.

Switchbeast struggled against the two enraged Rangers, having to rely on his own strength now that he couldn't use his switching ability against the Rangers. Emily sent him flying with her Earth Slicer, before turning to Mike. He saw her holding the Black Box.

"Here." She told him. "You use it."

"But Em..."

"You earned it Mike." She told him. "I trust you."

Mike took it from her, and held it out, powering up into Super Samurai Mode. He could feel the power coursing through him as he clipped the Black Box to his Spin Sword.

"Wow." Emily gasped as she beheld him. "It's amazing."

"It feels even more awesome." Mike assured her. "Just wait till you get your turn."

Clipping in his bear disk, starting it spinning.

"Super Forest Vortex!" Mike called out, slicing down the Nighlock. Switchbeast pitched backward slowly, before exploding, heralding the end of his first life. It started to grow, towering over the city.

"Alright Emily, what do you say we take this guy out?" He asked her. "Just the two of us!"

"Let's do it!" She agreed, pulling out her Samuraizer. "Call the Zords!"

Back at the Arena, Dekker was sent tumbling away by a harsh blow from Korragg's shield as he split his attention between his three opponents. The Knight Wolf was about to take the advantage in the situation, causing Dayu's heart to falter as she watched. Fortunately though, Goldar and Scorpina also saw the opening. Goldar smashed Korragg's shield aside, while Scorpina struck him down. He fell backwards, landing on the sand, at which both of them drove their swords through his chest, causing him to explode. Goldar looked to Scorpina, who was smiling, realising that they now only had one opponent to worry about.

"Let's finish him." She called out, turning and starting to run forward. However, she stopped short as Goldar's sword was rammed through her back, coming out through her rib cage. He pulled it out, letting her fall to her knees.

"You treacherous monkey!" She hissed as he came around in front of her, before striking her head from her shoulders, causing her to fade from the arena. Dekker got back to his feet and readied Urumasa.

"It looks like we face each other after all!" Goldar growled. "The prize will be mine!"

"Let's just finish this." Dekker told him. Goldar leapt into the air, coming towards him with a drop kick, his first mistake as Dekker threw himself aside, slicing across his abdomen.

As Goldar got up, he found his sword smashed from his hand, before with all his power, Dekker brought Urumasa across him. Goldar looked down in amazement, unable to comprehend what had happened. A seemingly harmless split opened in his armour, which opened wider, until his upper body fell free of the rest of him and he disappeared from the arena. The crowd all screamed as the exhausted and injured Dekker powered down, looking to The Box. The Judge stood up as the crowd went wild for the battle.

"Dekker, you have been victorious and won the ultimate prize." The Judge told him. "As agreed..."

"I agreed nothing!" Dekker announced. "You will remember that I said I would name my prize upon victory."

Dayu looked down in horror. All Dekker had to do to earn their freedom was say nothing and allow him to finish. Dekker though had always suspected The Judge to be deceptive. He was unconvinced he would honour the spirit of their deal. The Judge looked down on him.

"Then name your prize." The Judge told him. Dekker raised Urumasa, pointing it at him.

"I want you!" Dekker told him. "A battle for the release of all the creatures here to their rightful fate and an end to these infernal games!"

The crowd fell hushed. No one had ever contemplated taking on The Judge. The Judge could feel the eyes of the entire crowd upon him. Dekker had backed him into a corner.

"So, will you honour your promise of the ultimate prize?" Dekker asked. "Or are your words as empty as your cloak?"

"Be careful what you ask for Dekker." The Judge announced, turning into a cloud of black smoke, and flying down into the arena, appearing before him. He threw off the cloak, and grew to almost ten feet in height, and covered in black armour, with a huge, horned helmet with a hideous, daemonic face, and glowing red eyes. A pair of large, heavy swords appeared in his hands and pulled into a guard. Dekker turned back into his Nighlock form and prepared for battle.


	10. Rising to the Challenge

Spike came to, alongside Mal and his Uncle Bulk, looking around completely delighted to be back. Bulk let out a huge screech of elation.

"I didn't get recycled!" He screamed joyfully. "God, and I thought it was bad when I was a chimp."

"At least you weren't a newspaper." Spike muttered.

"You think you had it bad? I was a bacon cheeseburger!" He told them. "Do you know how much my mom would freak if she found out I broke two Kosher rules!"

"It could have been worse, someone could have eaten you." Spike reminded him. Just then, Jimmy and Vicky came back, looking a little too pale compared to normal, coming from the direction of the public bathrooms. Spike came over, looking between them.

"Uh...are you two alright?" He asked them.

"Yeah, fine." Vicky told him.

"Totally." Jimmy agreed. Spike was confused.

"So...what happened to you?" Spike asked them. "I ended up lining a bird cage and getting pooped on."

"I learned way too much about my little brother." Vicky told him.

"Ditto for my sister." Jimmy responded. "Can we go home and agree never to talk about this again?"

"Not a problem." Vicky replied as they walked away together. Spike just watched them go as Bulk came over.

"What was that about?" He asked his nephew. Spike just shook his head.

"I have no idea." He replied. "Man, the recycling truck took all our stuff! They must have thought it was garbage!"

"Here, take this." Bulk told him, handing him a hundred dollars. "Don't argue, after today you can use it. Go see if that girl still wants to go out."

Spike just took the money and ran, hoping that he wasn't so late Melanie would notice.

Over at the Arena, Dekker took a hard shot in the ribs, before The Judge smashed him in the face with the hilt of one of his swords, sending him falling to the sands. He had faced many powerful opponents in the centuries he had been around, but The Judge was on another level altogether. Although he was ten feet tall, and armoured, he moved with a speed and fluidity that defied logic. Everything that Dekker tried, he seemed to have an answer for.

The Judge turned to the crowd, throwing up his arms and accepting their adulation. Dekker watched him revelling in the noise of the crowd, and gesturing wildly with his swords, taking in their cheers. He looked to the box, and smiled as he saw that Dayu was not there. He pulled himself up to his feet and called out, drawing The Judge's attention back to him.

"You actually got up?" The Judge asked him. "Have you not seen that I am more powerful than you can imagine?"

"I believe in fighting until the fight is done." Dekker replied, rushing for him. The Judge didn't even try to block, holding his swords aside as Dekker brought Urumasa down on the crown of his helmet, but instead of finding impact, it found nothing as The Judge turned into black smoke, swirling around him, before reforming behind Dekker and slicing him across the back, sending him to the sands once more. He laughed as Dekker rolled back to his feet, snatching up Urumasa as he did so.

"Are you afraid to face me without tricks?" Dekker asked him. The Judge just gestured to the crowd.

"They don't seem to mind." He responded, gesturing back to the crowd. Dekker pulled back into a guard, before attacking again.

Mike and Emily called forth all the Zords, using the power of the Black Box to bring them to their aid. Forming up the Claw Armour Megazord, they found themselves in the cockpit, taking their places by their control consoles.

"Wow, this place seems huge without the others." Emily commented.

"Yeah, it definitely feels better having them with us." He agreed, clipping the Black Box to his Spin Sword. "Wow, this feels incredible, but we've only got two of us powering this. Let's make it quick."

"I'll make it quick for you alright." Switchbeast announced, powering up a blast. He launched it their way, but they deflected it, saving the Zords.

They smashed him a few times with the Claw Armour Megazord's katana, before shoving him to the ground, taking care to limit how much damage he would do. Seeing no buildings behind him, Mike pulled out his Spin Sword, and nodding to Emily as she did the same.

"Alright, we're not going to get a better shot at this." Mike told her, flicking out his Super Sabre.

"Double Katana Strike!" They called out together. Switchbeast let out one last scream as he fell to the ground, exploding on impact. Mike and Emily both fell to their knees inside the cockpit, completely drained. They couldn't remember ever feeling so tired or weak. With only two of them to power the attack, it had taken almost everything they had.

"Wow, that was...awesome." Mike said in laboured gasps as he tried to regain his breath.

"Yeah." Emily agreed, nodding her head wearily, also feeling the strain and breathing hard. "Let's never do that again."

"Now we just have one problem." Emily stated. "We're miles from the Shiba House, and we're both exhausted. How are we meant to get home?"

"I think this is one time Mentor won't mind us hitting up Jayden for cab fare." Mike assured her. "Power Down."

Back at the arena, The Judge had taken to playing with Dekker. Every time he swung his blade, The Judge would turn to smoke, making it impossible for Dekker to land a blow. Unfortunately, he could strike at will, taking Dekker apart one superficial cut at a time.

Dekker fell to his knees, clutching at a deep wound in his chest. He looked up to The Judge as he reformed, bringing his swords to bear, placing them like a pair of scissor blades across Dekker's neck.

"This has been fun. It has been a long time since I graced the sands." The Judge told him. "However, I fear it is time for the match to end. I shall enjoy seeing all the matches you provide in..."

His words tailed off as his hands started to quiver. He looked to his arms, feeling them beginning to strain with the weight of his own weapons. He looked to Dekker in horror as The Cursed Warrior just shoved him off.

It was as he got space that he heard screaming up in the stands and looked up to the audience. The other gladiators had somehow gotten free and were now running amuck, cutting down the audience as they fled for their lives. He looked to Dekker, who had Urumasa across his shoulders.

"You're weakening aren't you?" Dekker asked him. "I figured out your secret. The reason you hold these games. You get your power from the audience. Their cheers and bloodlust fuel your powers."

He started to shrink down, reducing the strain on his powers as he could feel it waning. He had been expending a vast amount of energy powering his awesome powers. Now that the crowd were running for their lives, he was not renewing the power he had lost.

"I had Dayu free the gladiators from their cells." Dekker informed him. "Now perhaps we can have a fair fight!"

Dekker swung wildly, smashing his swords aside before raking it across his chest, cutting an opening in the chest plate. The Judge was astounded that anyone could actually injure him.

He raised an arm, attempting to block Dekker's next attack, only to have his arm sliced from his body. Dekker raised his sword, preparing for the final strike, but The Judge fired a red bolt, which struck him, turning him into his human form. Dayu ran into the arena beside him.

"You fool; do you really think that you'll ever be free of the curse?" He asked. "You do not understand the nature of Urumasa's curse."

"I understand it better than anyone." Dekker replied curtly. "I have lived with it for centuries. I have taken up the Cursed Blade once more, but once I find one who can..."

"Really? Then answer me this. If the curse is purely on the blade, then how were you able to turn into a Nighlock without it?" The Judge asked him. Dekker paused as he heard this. He had wondered that himself. The curse was on Urumasa. It used him as a vessel to wield it, but he was not a Nighlock when he was cursed to carry it. He had only become a Nighlock after he defeated its previous owner.

He then fired another blast from his eyes. Dekker blocked it, but as he did so, Urumasa vanished.

"Finish me if you will." The Judge told him. "I have cursed you once more. Your memory will fade, and you will wander the earth as this cursed soul forever!"

"I'll take my chances." Dekker responded, snatching up one of The Judge's own swords. He used it to strike his head from his shoulders. In a flash of light, the remaining power within him flashed outward.

Dekker saw his restraining bracelet fall from his wrist, and Dayu's did the same. Looking around the arena, all the gladiators either crumbled to dust, returned to their original fate, or their bracelets released them. Jindrax leapt to Dekker's side.

"We're free, but there's just one problem." He stated. "How do we get home?"

Dekker threw the sword, lodging it in one of the arena walls, before pulling it out. Having created a gap, he gestured to Jindrax.

"We can give you a lift as far as Earth." Dekker told him, offering his hand. Jindrax took his hand, and with that, the three of them disappeared, leaving the arena behind.

Back in the mortal realm, Spike arrived at Melanie's house, and stood by the door. He knocked gently, waiting for an answer. A little while later, a large man in a Princeton jersey showed up. He towered over Spike, and looked like something from a WWE ring. He was bald, and had cold, blue eyes.

"Um...I'm here to pick up Melanie?" Spike stammered out.

"Oh, you are now are you?" The man asked judgementally. He glared at him.

"Leave him alone dad." Melanie said with a giggle as she arrived. She hugged him, before turning to Spike. "You came! I thought with the monster attack you might reschedule. I guess you got into cover."

"I got covered alright." Spike muttered under his breath.

"What was that?" Melanie asked. "I didn't hear...?"

"It's nothing." Spike assured her. "Look, I know it's later than we agreed, but there's an evening showing of the same movie starting in an hour and a half..."

"That sounds great!" She called out, pulling on her jacket. "I know a great place you can take me on the way."

"Uh...alright." Spike replied as he kept an eye on her dad, who was still giving him the stink eye. She hugged him. "I'll be back later daddy."

"Call me when the movie ends." He warned her. "I'll pick you up."

Melanie took Spike by the arm and started to march him up the path.

"So, what burger joint...?"

"Burger joints are so last decade." She told him. "I prefer the Italian place near the theatre."

Back at the Shiba House, Mike and Emily arrived, finding the others waiting for them in the yard. Antonio had already regained consciousness and had fired up the grill to make them dinner. Mike smiled to see them all waiting for them.

"Mentor, we...uh...needed to get a cab." Mike told him. "I'm a little short."

Mentor Ji just sighed and went out to pay the cab driver as Mike and Emily came to the table to sit down. Mike arrived just as Antonio placed a burger down in front of him.

"Burgers?" Mike asked. "I thought, you'd be making..."

"Well, I still owe you a jalapeno burger from earlier." Antonio stammered. "Besides, I still have loads of stock that's going to go to waste if we don't use it."

"Antonio, are you OK?" Emily asked, noticing that he was acting a little jittery.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He told her, gesturing back to the grill. "I have some wieners that need my attention."

"You guys did great today." Jayden said with an impressed tone as Antonio left the table. "You really pulled it off."

"Yeah, the way you took down that Nighlock rocked!" Kevin agreed. "Way to go."

"You really made a great team." Serena complimented them, hugging her sister.

"It was mostly Mike." Emily stated. "He figured out the plan."

"No, we were a team." He told her, taking her hand softly. "I couldn't have done it without you."

They leaned in, kissing each other softly, before Mike looked back to the table.

"By the way, you guys have GOT to try that Black Box!" He announced. "That was sick!"

"I'm definitely looking forward to my turn." Mia agreed.

"Well, speaking of cool outfits..." Mike stated, flipping open his Samuraizer. Emily, Mia, Jayden, Serena and Stephen started to laugh, at which he turned it to show Kevin. His face fell as he saw what was on the screen.

"You took pictures?" He screamed. In the excitement of the victory, and being grateful at being back to normal, he had almost forgiven Mike for the tutu incident.

"Yup." Mike said with a mischievous grin. "And these are so going on Twitter!"

"Oh no you don't!" Kevin called out as Mike got up and started to run. "Come back here!"

"I thought you and Mike would be tired after controlling the Zords." Mia commented.

"You know Mike." Emily giggled. "He's never too tired to cause trouble."

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city, Dekker, Jindrax and Dayu arrived through a gap. Dekker turned to Jindrax.

"Well, I guess I should be going." Jindrax told them. "There's a lady out there who's probably still looking for me."

"I hope you find her." Dekker assured him. Jindrax put an arm around him and held him closely.

"She's quite a woman." He told him. "You do right by her."

"I plan to." Dekker assured him. Jindrax walked away, bidding his friends farewell as he went off on his journey. Dayu came to Dekker's side, putting an arm around her, but was stunned as he threw it off aggressively.

"Dekker, what are you doing?" She asked him.

"What does it look like?" He asked her. "Leave my sight."

He could see the pain on her face as he said this. It was only eclipsed by the pain in his heart as he faced her. The Judge, in a final act of spite, had cursed him. He could already feel his memories beginning to leave him. While he still felt his heart racing as he looked at her, he knew that it would not be long before he once more saw her as nothing but another Nighlock.

"Dekker..."

"I did not ask for you to follow me!" He snarled at her. "I did not ask for you to intervene in my fate!"

"I couldn't watch you die!" She screamed. "When I found out you were in that place..."

"You should have left me there!" Dekker roared at her. He swallowed a lump in his throat as he glared at her.

"But...you fought for me." She reminded him. "You fought to free me."

"I fought because I saw the means to face an opponent who might have finally ended my existence." Dekker spat. "An existence that was cursed by your selfish love!"

"Dekker, you can't mean that!" Dayu protested. He just turned from her.

"Leave." He told her, struggling to keep himself from shedding tears. He knew that before the sun rose, he would no longer see her as the woman he loved with all his heart. He now knew that he was a Nighlock, even without Urumasa. With the drive for battle of his Nighlock form, and no memory, he could think of no other way to ensure he would not eventually destroy her. "If we cross paths again, I will kill you."

"Dekker!" She called out one more time as he started to walk away. He stopped in his tracks. "I love you."

He tightened his hands into fists, and sniffed back some tears. He had hoped that she would just leave, and every moment tore his heart apart. He knew that he only had one way to make her leave.

"Your love has cursed us for eternity." Dekker told her. "I want no part of it."

"Please." She begged him. "I know you love me too."

Dekker wiped away his tears and steeled himself as he turned to face her. He straightened up, giving her a cold, hard glare that went straight her. He could see her tears and it tore his heart into pieces as he told the lie that he knew he had to, the one that would keep her from her fools' errand.

"I do not love you." He told her coldly. "Do what you will, but stay from my sight."

With that, he turned and walked away, just as his tears began to fall. Dayu fell to her knees behind him, turning back into her Nighlock form, her heart completely destroyed. All she had was Dekker, and the hopes of having him returned to her. Now, that hope was gone, and she was alone in her cursed existence forever.

In the Netherworld, Master Xandred flew into a rage as the Rangers had prevailed once again. His anger was terrifying, and he shook the Junk harshly as he rampaged around.

"Sire, you must calm down!" Octoroo begged him. He tried to think of something to appease him, but could only think of one thing. "Switchbeast was not even one of your followers. This has cost you nothing!"

"Are you that stupid?" Master Xandred asked him. "Why do you think I am so angry?"

"I don't understand." Octoroo answered.

"He worked for another master." Xandred reminded him. "How many other Nighlock do you know foolish enough not to acknowledge me as their master?"

"You really think...?" Octoroo asked. Xandred just picked up a flask of his medicine and started to drink.

"Can there be any doubt?" Xandred asked as the Furry Worts came down and started to chatter, irritating him. He ripped one off and launched it out the window in rage. "We will not be alone much longer."

Back in the human realm, Dayu was walking by a lake, completely devastated by what had transpired. Dekker was gone, and she was alone in the world. She looked up as a Furry Wort washed up on the show. She came across and picked it up.

"You poor thing." She whispered. "Are you alone like me?"

"Missed you, missed you!" It chattered. She just sighed.

"Master Xandred has banished you as he has banished me." She told him. "I have no place in the human realm, or the Netherworld. Now, I don't even have Dekker."

She looked to it as another feeling came over her.

"The accursed Nighlock have taken everything from me." She told it. "I vow to do anything I can to make them all pay, even if it means I am destroyed in the process."

"Pay, pay, pay!" the Furry Wort giggled. She cradled it closely.

"Until then, at least I have you to talk to." She responded as she continued on her journey, taking the first steps on her road to vengeance.


	11. Switchbeast's Aftermath

The following morning, the Rangers were out in the training yard, going through their paces. Mike and Emily had been allowed to train with each other at a reduced pace to recover from the exertion of having to battle without the back-up of the others, but the rest were going at it harder than ever. Having been out of their bodies for almost a whole day, they wanted to make sure they had gotten all their faculties back to normal, and were back to form.

Mentor Ji was on the sidelines, keeping an eye on all of them, interjecting wherever he felt he was needed. Kevin was in one corner, working on his archery, while Mia was doing some kata with her Sky Fan. He was happy with the work they had done so far, and was confident that if the time came, they would be ready for action.

Mike was in another corner, teaching Emily some of his unarmed combat techniques. He had to remind them once when it started to look a little too much like flirting to get their minds on the task at hand, but on the whole, he was appreciative of the fact they had both used a lot of symbol power, and needed some time to recover from that, but after their gentle warning, they were able to get the balance between gentle exercise and serious work just right.

He smiled as he saw Emily catch one of Mike's kicks and take him down into a perfect knee bar submission just like he had been teaching her. His youngest Rangers had troubled him the most over their time in the house, but after the previous day, he couldn't remember being more proud of them. They had grown into young adults, and he was sure that in time, they would enjoy a good marriage.

Finally, he turned his attention to Jayden and Antonio, who were working on their blade work. It was more than just their relationship, Jayden genuinely liked working with Antonio because of his differing style. He had always encouraged the others to mix it up, working with other weapons, sometimes even with weapons they would virtually never use. It served a dual purpose. Having been caught without powers before, he knew that it would always be good to know that they could handle the situation they didn't have access to swords. It also prepared them for the fact that not every opponent was considerate enough to only attack with katana and fight in exactly the same style they were taught.

With his wooden tanto, Antonio was on the offensive, keeping Jayden guessing with his unorthodox style. It was exactly the reason he liked working with Antonio, even when they were working with alternate weapons and switching opponents, none of them was as unpredictable as Antonio. He fought very much how he lived, no one knew what to expect from him, which meant at times he could pull off some genuine moments of real brilliance that no one else would have thought of. Were it not for him, they would never have unlocked the secrets of the Black Box. The Claw Zord would still not be operational, and the battles with the Nighlock may well already have been over.

Jayden managed to catch him though as he pulled off a jumping spin, driving a straight kick into his chest and sending him to the mat. One of the few drawbacks with Antonio's unorthodox ways and random style was that occasionally he made moves that were somewhat less than brilliant. His manoeuvre was designed to distract and intimidate, creating the opening to attack, but to someone as skilled as Jayden, with proper timing, it opened him up to an attack. Jayden flicked away his tanto, before kneeling on Antonio's chest, holding his bokken to his throat.

"Alright, I think that should be enough for now." Mentor Ji told them. "I'll be working on a few things in my study. Wash up and be back for afternoon training at three PM."

Mike, Emily, Mia and Kevin made their way towards their rooms to get cleaned up as Jayden helped Antonio back to his feet. He smiled as he got back up.

"You had me going there for a while." Jayden complimented him.

"Thanks." Antonio replied as he took a towel from the bench and started to wipe himself down.

"So, after we get washed up, where are you taking the cart?" Jayden asked him. Antonio just looked at him.

"Uh...I'm not going out today." Antonio told him. Jayden just looked up at the bright, clear blue sky and back to Antonio.

"Are you sure?" He asked. "It's a beautiful day. I'd have thought it would be perfect to get..."

"I...um...I don't have any stock." Antonio told him. "Mentor Ji didn't get my cart back in time. I had to throw out the fish I had at the market."

"Oh." Jayden replied. "Well, I guess you can finally get round to teaching me how to fish..."

"I don't really feel like it." Antonio told him. He could see that Jayden was somewhat surprised by this. "You do remember what happened last time right? My shoulders still hurt from Ji's punishment drills!"

"I just would have thought..."

"I do more than just fish!" Antonio said a little too harshly. He saw the look on Jayden's face, and realised he had to do something to ease the situation. He smiled at him. "Besides, if I'm not working, we could always go and do something fun together. I heard there was something going on at the comic book store."

"Sure." Jayden replied. "Let's get washed up and changed, then we'll head into town."

Jayden was a few paces behind Antonio as they made their way into the Shiba House. Something just didn't seem right. While Antonio did have a point that he didn't ALWAYS have to be out fishing or working, he had never seemed so dead-set against going before. He then remembered that Antonio had been turned into a fish, and could remember seeing him faint as he saw the cat eating that fish when he returned to his own body. He just shrugged and decided to let it go. He supposed it was only reasonable that he might want to lay off the fish for a little while, and it wasn't like taking a couple of days off would hurt.

Over at the school, Spike arrived, finding Mal, Jimmy and Vicky waiting by his locker. He saw Jimmy and Mal looking a lot more cheerful than they had been the last time he had seen them, but then since everyone was back in their own bodies safe and sound, he wasn't really too surprised. He came over to them, putting his bag down on the floor.

"It was a pretty wild day yesterday huh?" He asked them. They all just nodded.

"I'm just glad it's over." Vicky responded. "Just when I think this town can't get any weirder, something like that happens!"

"I know what you mean." Mal agreed. "My mom always says if we had the money, she'd move."

"I thought you lived in a good neighbourhood." Spike commented.

"Yeah, but the property prices suck at the moment!" Mal told him. "Who wants to live in a town where half the homes get stomped on every other week?"

Spike was about to answer, but realised that he had a point. One problem faced by any town a Ranger team showed up in was that for a while, the property prices nosedived. His own dad had told him how his parents had only afforded to buy their house because they bought it during Rita's reign. A lot of people were stuck in the city, being unable to afford to move as many would like to do. While the Rangers kept the property damage to a minimum, and saved the world, the sad fact was that many buildings were destroyed during their battles.

Just then, Melanie came by with some of the other cheerleaders. She brushed past him, stroking his shoulders. Mal and Jimmy lit up to see this, but Vicky just groaned and turned away, heading into the bathroom. She really didn't need to see that.

"Spike, I had a really great time last night." She told him.

"I did too." He replied. "Sorry I arrived so late."

"It's alright." She giggled. "After that monster attack, I'm glad you made it at all."

She looked to her friends, who were waving her to follow them, heading to class. She just looked back to Spike and smiled.

"You know, there's a really great musical on at the weekend." She told him. "The Lion King came into town. Would you like to take me?"

As she started to stroke his jacket, he started to stammer.

"Uh...uh...uh..." He stammered, before looking to Jimmy and Mal. "Sure, why not?"

"Great." She told him. "I know a great place we can go before hand. You can pick me up at six...unless you get turned into a newspaper again."

He turned a little pink as she said this. He had eventually told her on the date exactly what had happened to him. She leaned in and kissed his cheek, before walking away to join her friends. Spike had a really goofy grin on his face as he turned to Jimmy and Mal.

"Dude, that was awesome!" Jimmy screamed. "Seriously, two dates in a row with the hottest girl in your year?"

"Possibly the hottest girl in the school!" Mal added. "I guess I need to get myself on YouTube."

"Yeah, it's great." Spike told them. "I just don't know how I'm going to pay for it."

"The allowance thing again?" Jimmy asked him. He just nodded.

"She's great, but that date last night wiped out what Uncle Bulk gave me." He told them. "She wanted Italian and took me to L'Oliva Verda."

"Wow, no wonder you're broke." Mal replied with a low whistle. "My parents took me there once. There were no prices on the menus they gave to mom and me."

"That's not a good sign." Jimmy agreed with a pained expression.

"Dad looked like he was going to pass out when the bill arrived." Mal completed his story. "So what are you going to do?"

"I guess I could find a job." Spike said with a shrug. "Or I could find some odd jobs."

"Well, given what's waiting at the end, it'll be worth it." Jimmy told him as they heard the bell and started to walk to class.

In the bathroom though, Vicky was in a cubicle, still fuming over her friends' insistence on going on and on about Melanie and Spike. She knew they had gone on a date, she knew they found her attractive, did they really have to keep going on about it?

She sat on the cistern, clenching her teeth together as she thought about it. Melanie was everything she wasn't. She was popular, she was pretty...it was no shock to her that the guys seemed to lose all sense when she showed an interest in one of them. The way they descended into mindless idiots when she came by...

"At least they'll be on her level." She muttered bitterly. She heard the door open, and a couple of girls entering the bathroom, laughing and joking. Under the cubicle, she could see coloured socks, and knew they were cheerleaders. She could recognise the voices too. Just like the guys, she had seen her share of bullying, but in some ways, girls were worse. She had spent a fair amount of time in the toilet cubicles crying her eyes out over the names they called her and the stories they spread. She pulled up her feet onto the seat so they couldn't see someone was in the cubicle. They didn't seem to be paying too much attention though.

"I can't believe it; you seriously went out with him?" One of the cheerleaders piped up. "I mean, I know since the fight he's all 'King of YouTube' and everything, but seriously?"

Vicky paused as she heard this. They were talking about Spike? One of them was obviously Melanie.

"Yeah, I did." She replied. "I had a really good time too."

"How good a time?" One of the others asked her. Vicky mimed puking in the cubicle. She found it hard enough to hear the boys talking, the last thing she needed was to hear the gory details.

"He didn't get to second base." She assured them. "I let him take my jacket, but that was about it."

"So...that's a great time?" One of the others asked. "You pick the dorkiest kid you can find, and don't even let him touch you and that's a great time? What did you do, stare at how pasty and dorky he looked?"

"I had a great time." She assured them with a little giggle. "Oh, by the way, that new picture you wanted to see? It's great, but even better in the premier showing."

"Wait, what?" One of them asked. "You mean...?"

"Yeah, he got me into the exclusive showing." She told them. "After dinner at L'Oliva Verda of course. You can't go somewhere like that on an empty stomach."

"Jeez, no wonder you had a good time." One of them laughed. "He looks like he dresses from a thrift store. How the heck did he afford that?"

"I guess I'm just worth it." Melanie told them as they all chatted among themselves. "Perhaps you ladies have heard of Google?"

She saw the feet all gather around, and presumed they were gathering around Melanie to hear what she had to see.

"Skullovitch isn't exactly a common surname." Melanie explained. "When I heard him talk about his 'Uncle Bulk', I checked it out. He lives with Farquis Bulkmeyer."

"Bulkmeyer?" One of them asked. "And his name is..."

"Skullovitch." Melanie reiterated. "As in the old owners of Bulkmeyer's? Check it out, when they sold it, they made a packet! Eugene Skullovitch is still in business. He's worth a freaking fortune!"

Vicky almost slipped off the toilet seat hearing this. She didn't like Melanie, or her friends, but now she was hearing this, she was really starting to hate them.

"He's taking me to The Lion King this weekend." Melanie told them proudly. "After that little display in the hall, I'm sure he wants more."

"And is he going to get it?" One of her friends asked. Melanie just laughed out loud.

"What do you think?" Melanie asked her. "Once I make a big splash at the end of term dance in a couple of months, all on his ticket of course, I have a feeling I may be giving Jeremy a little call."

With that, they all filed out of the bathroom, leaving Vicky alone in the cubicle. She slipped down, sitting on the seat, her mouth hanging open in horror. She couldn't believe what she had heard. She hated the thought of Spike going out with one of the girls that had made her life miserable, and now having heard what she had, she was completely sick to her stomach. Melanie only wanted Spike for what she could get from him. She hadn't even looked at him until he had become 'King of YouTube', and even then had only deigned to approach him once she knew about Spike's family.

She got up and headed for class with her mind racing. She had no idea what to do, Spike was her friend, and she knew he was going to be hurt once he heard about this. The problem was, would he believe her if she told him?

Fin


End file.
